


Paint it black

by StressQueen



Category: Naruto
Genre: Acting, Alliances, Betrayal, Bittersweet Ending, Comedy, F/M, Fanfiction, Implied Sexual Content, Love/Hate, M/M, Ninja, Romance, Tragedy/Comedy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-12-14
Updated: 2017-12-24
Packaged: 2018-05-06 15:49:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 24
Words: 53,513
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5422871
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StressQueen/pseuds/StressQueen
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Takeo is a weak girl who lived a pampered life, but when she is forced to join an alliance with the Uchiha her life begins to spiral out of control. What's worse is that she has to work closely with Madara Uchiha who hate girls of her kind. Will she survive this ordeal or will she fail?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

"You sure you want to do this, little bro?" I asked as I rolled up the sleeve to my dress. I winded my arm for dramatic effect and smirked up at Jiro. He glared down at me, obviously not amused by my playful attitude. "This is a serious matter here, Takeo. Mother and the clan's elders would appreciate it if you were serious," he scolded. I rolled my eyes at him and brought my arm back, getting reading to throw it out.

"Oh, I am serious. Serious about beating your butt," I smirked. Jiro shook his fist, getting prepared for the upcoming battle.

"On three, and close your eyes," he muttered.

"Whatever, one… two… THREE!"

I threw out my fist, I kept my eyes shut tight as my heart pounded roughly in my chest. I opened my eyes slowly to see the result.

Jiro had Paper and I had rock.

I lost…

"It seems to be that I'll be joining the Senju," Jiro said as he stared at his open hand un-amused. I was about to smack him with an open hand.

"That's not fair! I never lose at rock paper scissors. You must have cheated, you piece of shit!" I yelled as I grabbed his shirt and pushed him back. This was complete bullshit, the only time I lost in that game was when I broke my index finger and couldn't make a complete rock. Jiro raised an eyebrow, "You're being childish, Takeo. Accept the defeat. I'm going with the Senju… you're going with the Uchiha."

My eyes widened.

"You're sending me to my death! They'll skin me alive, Jiro!" I grabbed onto him again and this time I pulled him towards me, pressing my cheek against his chest as tears stung my eyes. "They're not even attractive, Jiro…" I squeaked. My brother pushed me aside and walked down the hallway.

"I'm sure they're not attracted to you either," he huffed. I felt my lip tremble as I imagined wearing those weird high collared shirts they have. "They're gonna make me partake in their gory fashion!" I complained as I stomped my foot. Jiro waved me off and turned a corner.

I sighed and looked down at my feet. Turning around, I headed in the opposite direction of Jiro and made my way to the training grounds… somewhere I've never been before.

I'm part of the Isoroku clan. We're large in numbers, but that doesn't mean we're strong. Since we're weak and practically defenseless we hide from other clans and refuse to open ourselves to any others, so we don't run the risk of making enemies. Well, it's been going great, until my mother, the head of the clan, got an alliance proposal from two different clans.

The Senju… and the Uchiha.

Since the Isoroku is a weak clan my mother hatched a suicide mission, a last ditch effort to make our clan strong. She asked that my brother and me join either the Senju or Uchiha and steal whatever secrets they might have that them strong. She wants us to pretend that a rift in the clan happened, causing the head's two children to go off and join the clan that they think is the strongest. It's for dramatic effect, ya know?

The elders of the clan were stupid enough to believe in this plan, and I say it's about time they died. Who needs old people making crazy decisions? Especially ones that could put me through a lot of trouble.

I paused when I finally reached outside. Where are the training grounds again?

I shrugged and headed left. I'll find it eventually.

I'm not exactly the ninja type. I'm weak, and that's okay. You don't have to be strong, but not everybody thinks so. Since I'm the firstborn and the daughter to the head of our clan I'm expected to be strong, but I'm not. Jiro is though. He's always being praised and glorified. The other members keep saying how he should be the next in line. I'm just ignored, and ridiculed when I'm not looking.

It bothers me… but I'm not interested in being a great ninja like Jiro… or even a ninja at all.

"Lady Takeo!"

"Akio!" I grinned.

A boy about my age came running up to me. He was wearing a wrapped around skirt and was trying not to trip on it as he came over to me. Sweat beaded his face, and he looked tired, but he still smiled at me.

"Are you looking for Jiro?" I asked. Akio shook his head and held out his hand. I stared at him.

"You're joining the Uchiha, correct?"

I glowered.

"Well, then that means you have to meet the men who will be joining you on your mission. They're waiting for you at the training grounds," he smiled. I rolled my eyes and took his hand as he led me in the opposite direction. I guess I was going the wrong way.

"How'd you find out so quick?" I asked.

"Jiro informed me right after your game," Akio looked over his shoulder, "You two really decided over rock paper scissors… my lady?"

"Thought I would win…" I whispered.

"Anyway, here we are," he whispered as he slowly approached the men I would be guiding. They stood in a grassy field and talked amongst each other. Not in the least informed of the incoming train wreck.

"My father doesn't know yet…" Akio whispered as he nudged his head towards Mori, who was the only one actually training. He was practicing his aim by throwing kunai knives at a tree.

I frowned. This was too much; I can't lead a group of men. I can't even get a toddler to listen to me.

Akio squeezed my hand. "I'll be joining you on your mission. So I'll help you along the way," he grinned. I nodded my head and released Akio's hand as I headed to the men. They didn't even notice me yet until I cleared my throat. The minute they looked at me a few groans were made. I looked down and twiddled my thumbs.

They could have waited to complain when I was gone at least…

Mori was the only one who didn't though. He dropped his last kunai and headed over to me. I gulped in fear as his strict eyes were trained on me. He was tall, taller than Jiro. He was buff as well. It's crazy how a muscular looking man could produce such a delicate thing like Akio.

"My lady," he greeted as he bowed his head.

"Hey…"

"Um, so like, I'm going to be your leader…" I mumbled as I scratched the back of my head nervously. My eyes were scattered all over the face. One second I was looking at Mori's crazy arms then another minute I was looking at someone's crotch.

"We're going to be joining the Uch—"

I couldn't even finish. People started groaning and crying out in despair.

I bit my lip as I looked up at Mori who seemed calm and collected… yet somewhat determined. He looked ready to kick butt and eat butt.

"Is this disrespect you are showing?!" Mori shouted as he joined my side. All the men immediately stood up straight and not a peep was made.

"The lady of our clan just told you of what is to happen and instead she's given whines from grown men?" he asked angrily. I smirked.

"Although we don't practice this no more… men who were disrespectful to higher members of clan were castrated," Akio said as he too joined my side. He glared at the men in front of us.

"Give your apologies to Lady Takeo," Mori ordered. I watched as all the men quickly dropped down to their knees and pressed their head into the soil. Each and everyone shouted out apologies, their voices mixed with each other and it became inaudible. I gave a weak smile.

"Thank you… Mori, Akio…" I whispered. Mori looked down at me and grinned. He ruffled my hair and then quickly glared back at the men with crossed arms.

Mori was a friend of my dad. They were close from what I understood. When my dad died Mori took it upon himself to help raise Jiro and I as my mother was given the burden of being leader to our clan. He's tough, considered one of the strongest in our clan like my brother, but there isn't a giant stick up his ass like Jiro so he's good.

"We aren't expected to leave immediately to the Uchiha's compound… I suggest we spend the next few days training," Akio recommended. Mori nodded and looked down at me. "We'll be training you especially hard, so no complaining. Got it?" he asked as he pointed a meaty finger at me. I nodded.

"Good! Now, everyone, continue on with your training!"

-

"I can't believe I'm expected to do that many pushups!" I whined as I lowered my head on the table. Akio chuckled as he sat across from me.

"My father just wants you to be prepared when we leave the compound. You've never left, haven't you?" he asked. I looked up at him and shook my head.

"No, why would I? There's nothing but trees and more trees. I'm perfectly okay with living behind these walls," I sighed. Akio shook his head.

"There are villages out there, Takeo. Imagine living in one…" he grinned. I shrugged, "What's imaging going to do for me? I'll never be able to."

The Isoroku are forever to be hidden away deep inside a forest. Away from everyone and anyone. We're too weak; isolation is the only thing keeping us alive.

Akio sighed and leaned against the table. We were in his room, going over plans he had. At least, that's what we were supposed to do.

"Hey, so why did you decide to join me? Why not Jiro?" I asked. Akio blushed and looked away. "Does it really matter now? You're my friend…"

"Kinda does…" I lied.

"Well, Jiro asked me to. He said you needed the help…" Akio admitted. I rolled my eyes and waved him off. "Of course!" I shouted.

"I'm a little worried about Jiro though. He doesn't always make the right decisions when in a pinch…" he murmured.

"Don't worry. Jiro is strong. His muscles will get him out of any trouble," I said. Akio looked up at me, not really believing me.

I gave Akio a cheeky grin and motioned him over to me. He gave me a questionable stare and complied. When his face was close to mine, I moved my lips to his ear.

"I mean, he might get a little horny without you buuuuut—"

"TAKEO!"


	2. Into the frying pan

"Deep breaths, Takeo."

I kept my eyes locked down at my hands as they rested on my thighs. I couldn't breath. My body was heating up, I felt like I was going through menopause and having a heat attack. Cold sweat was beading my forehead and suddenly my stomach began to turn as I heard footsteps outside the room.

I opened my mouth to inhale a deep breath before the person outside could enter. I looked up from my hands finally and stared at the table in front of Mori, Akio, and I. As I sucked in the air the door behind us slid open. I quickly closed my mouth and stood there seated on the floor. My heart was pounding hard as a shadow was casted over me by the person at the door. I stared at the outline of body and slowly looked at Mori who was fixed on the shadow. The usual loud and brave man was rendered silent and looked deadly serious. I looked over to Akio and saw he had his eyes closed. He had his robe bunched up in his hand tightly.

I looked away from Akio and stared straight ahead. How long was this guy behind us just gonna stand there?

I gulped. The more he stood there the sicker I felt.

"How long are you going to stand there?" I questioned. Immediately Mori and Akio gasped at my sudden question. I was surprised too. I just sat there with my mouth gapped, completely in denial that I even dared to open my mouth. The man behind us stayed quiet and eventually after a moment he walked to the table in front of us. I closed my mouth and stared hard at him as he kneeled down.

"You're finally here, Takeo Isoroku," he spoke.

I nodded my head and waited for Akio to talk. As we heading over to the Uchiha compound it was agreed that Akio would do most of the talking. It was feared that I would say something stupid… well, oops… I didn't listen too well I guess.

"We're sorry for the delayed response to your alliance proposal," Akio apologized. He bowed his head and slowly rose back up. "We came here as fast as we could," he finished. The man ignored Akio and stared at me. I stared back, trying my hardest not to blink or look away. I couldn't show any sign of fear.

"You're letting someone else do the talking for you?" he asked.

I blinked.

Damn.

I could feel Akio tense up right next to me. I slowly lowered my gaze down to my lap and quickly looked up. "We're sorry for the delayed response. We came here as fast as we could," I repeated. The man seemed like he was waiting for me to say something else.

"Madara," I said quietly. I bowed my head, but not as low as Akio. Also, before we arrived Akio had made sure I know exactly who the leader of the Uchiha is. I only remembered his name because it sounded so stupid and I couldn't stop making fun of it.

Madara looked down at the table. He had papers neatly piled at the corner. Taking one of them, he stared at it and began to write on it. "Is it correct that Jiro took another half of your clan to join the Senju?" he asked. Madara didn't seem too interested in what else we had to say, but he continued to keep us here in the room trapped. I looked at Akio who was about to open his mouth and talk, but I beat him to it.

"You're right. We didn't see eye to eye when deciding who to accept an alliance from," I answered. I was a mess inside. Akio was supposed to be talking, but here I am doing it all. My heart was beating frantically and my body heat didn't die down the least.

"You're okay fighting your brother when the time comes?" Madara asked. He raised his gaze to me. I had to stop myself from looking down. I thought of all the times Jiro had pushed me to the limit. How everyone looked down at me and looked up to Jiro. I thought of the good things mom would say to him when she didn't think… and of the criticism she gave me when we were together. I felt my lips twitch as I imagined my own mother wishing I were something I'm not. My lips began to twitch at the thought. I wanted to cry, but I couldn't because Madara was looking.

"Yes, I wouldn't have a problem with it," I answered. It was the truth.

Madara looked down at his papers, not saying anything.

"You may come in now, Izuna."

What?

I stared at Madara, but I could feel Akio and Mori's eyes on me.

The door behind us slid open and immediately another man walked in. He made his way over to Madara and stood next to him. I tried to remain calm, I really did… but I couldn't help but open my mouth to quickly suck in a deep breath, I felt like I was going to go crazy at any minute. Being trapped in this room was making me crazy, I just wanted to hurry up and get out and breath in fresh air. Not being interrogated by these guys.

"Since you have no problem fighting against your brother you wouldn't mind telling us just where exactly he hides his birthmark…" Izuna spoke. He seemed a lot kinder than Madara, who practically had evil seeping from his pores, but I still felt nervous around him.

"Birthmark?" I questioned. My heart was gonna shoot out of my throat.

Izuna nodded his head. "Every member of the Isoroku clan has a birthmark. If anyone were to touch it they would completely drain the person of their chakra and leave them weak. I shouldn't have to explain this to someone like you," Izuna said. There was edge to his voice as he finished his sentence. I felt my lips tremble as Izuna stared deep into my eyes. I felt like I was going to be engulfed by them.

"How do you know about this?" I asked weakly. I suddenly felt like a lamb that stupidly walked into the lion's den. I was slowly growing smaller and smaller.

Izuna didn't answer. He seemed collected in his thoughts. As my heart pounded frantically against my chest, I felt my anger and freight get the best of me. I pressed my sweaty hands against the wood floor and stood up shakily. My legs wobbled, but I managed to stand up straight. I felt Akio tug at my skirt to bring me back down but moved away from him. I glared at Izuna who stared at me in surprise.

"Tell me! Who told you this?" I demanded.

No one was ever supposed to know of the birth defect our clan has. This is what made us afraid of everyone; this is what made us weak, made us stay hidden away in the forest.

"No one was ever supposed to find out…" I whispered as I felt my legs go weak. Did the Uchiha only request an alliance so they could drain us of our chakra? They were this evil?

Was I going to die in this place?

My legs gave in from under me and I fell back, but Mori caught me in time. I fell in his arms and he held onto me tightly. Was he afraid?

Madara, who was watching quietly, finally spoke.

"This conversation can he wait for another day—"

"Like hell!" I screamed. I gripped Mori's forearm and dug my nails into him. I was seeing red now. I just wanted to get out; this room was growing smaller now. I felt too crowded in here.

"You're just going to take away our chakra… you didn't want us to fight alongside you… you just needed someone to feed off of," I whispered. Madara glared at me. He gripped the edge of the table tightly.

"This conversation can wait for another day," he hissed,

"Why would I wait another day to hear about how you're going to kill us?" I yelled. This yelling certainly wasn't going to ensure our survival. I should have left the talking to Akio. Maybe he could have bought us survival. I guess this is why I wasn't supposed to talk. I always just said whatever I wanted when I got nervous or scared or angry.

Madara engaged in a glaring contest with me. I was breathing heavily through my nose. Mori was silent, not sure what he was supposed to say. He wasn't a brain, he was just muscle, but at least he was smart enough to know when was a good time to talk.

Akio though, why wasn't he saying anything? Was he trying to figure out what to say or was he too scared?

"You don't have the same ideas as your father…" Izuna said casually. I was finally starting to cool down. I was now as cold as ice as sweat began to pour down my body. It was amazing how quickly I was reacting to whatever these bastards were saying.

"Are you going to explain that to me? Or is that conversation gonna have to wait for another day?" I snapped. Izuna smiled at me, but I glared back.

"It was your father who told me of the birthmark. I came across him years ago. I was there when he died and I listened to everything he told me."

"You're lying…" I whispered.

"He told me that the Isoroku needed to stop being afraid and go out and embrace what the world had to offer them," Izuna said. He was talking as if this was just a normal thing to say. As if this didn't have any sort of impact on anybody in this room. Tears began to fall. I quickly wiped them. It took me this long to start crying?

"He wasn't scared of the birthmark, he felt there was more to it than something to just be afraid of…"

Mori tightened his arms around me so I wouldn't move. I tried to break away from him, but I couldn't. His grip was so tight; it was getting harder to breath. "Let go of me!" I yelled. I noticed that Izuna's eyes widened a bit, but they quickly went back to normal when I broke free. I landed on my knees and hands as tears dropped to the floor.

"If you were there with my dad then why didn't you help him?" I asked. Izuna looked down.

"I wouldn't have been able to do anything significant. He was going to die either way," he answered. He seemed almost sorry.

"You believe him? He could have told you a lie just now," Madara said. I wiped away my tears, refusing to look at Madara. "No one is stupid enough to believe in such a thing," I murmured.

"You didn't leave my father to die alone, did you?" I asked Izuna. He shook his head. "No, I stuck with him to the end. It was the least I could do," he said giving me relief. I remember crying, believing my dad was alone when he died. When his body was brought back to the compound and eventually buried I spent hours at the grave. I didn't want him to be alone anymore.

He was the only one who told me I didn't have to be strong like the others in the clan. He said I didn't have to be a ninja like Jiro and that I didn't have to be anything I didn't want to be. He protected me from everyone who ridiculed me.

"Because of your father we just might have the chance to defeat the Senju. Takeo—"

I looked up at Izuna.

"We don't want to drain you of your chakra, we want to help you grow stronger, and in turn you'll use that strength to help us defeat the Senju."

I felt weak from all the different emotions I was feeling. I just wanted to go home. I made eye contact with Izuna. "Fine. I'll trust you on this," I said. I stood up and walked over to Izuna. I felt Madara's eyes on me. I ignored him and stuck my hand out towards Izuna. He seemed surprised for a moment, but took my hand and shook it.

"I want to rest now," I muttered as I looked down.

"Of course, I'll show you to—"

"I'll show you and your men to the barracks," Madara said. He stood up from the table and looked at me. He towered over me, casting a shadow. I nodded my head and looked towards Akio and Mori who sat still on the floor. Sweat was clearly shown on their face. I motioned for them to stand.

Looking back at Madara, I followed him out of the room.

-

"When your men get settled into their rooms I want to talk to you," Madara said quietly as we watched my men enter the barracks. I looked down at my toes. I didn't want to do anymore talking today. I just wanted to sleep and hope for the best.

"Of course," I said as I looked at Madara. He stared at me, as if he was judging me. It immediately reminded me of Jiro. My stomach turned and I quickly looked away. They had the same cold looking face. I can't stand people like that.

"I'm going to get settled as well, I'll be back," I said excusing myself. I quickly walked away from Madara and entered the barracks. When I entered the room I felt like the weight of world dropped from my shoulders. I leaned against the wall and slid down as I pressed my hand to my mouth to muffle the sobs. I was still terrified. Never in life had I felt so vulnerable, so unsure of what the future held for me. How was I going to pull a strong front?

There was a knock at my door. Before I could tell the person to beat it, they walked in. It was Madara of course. He looked annoyed, but then looked uncomfortable when he saw me on the floor. I saw men from behind him still running through the halls, trying to get settled in.

"They aren't…"

"I know," he said quickly. He closed the door behind him and stared down at me. He looked conflicted, but still kinda mean.

"If you look constipated all the time… people are going to take you the wrong way…" I pointed out. Madara glared.

"Don't get friendly with me. It was Izuna who wanted this alliance, not me."

I nodded my head.

Madara paused; I think he expected a different response from me.

"I don't believe what he said, but I'm willing to go along with his nonsense and accept this alliance with you, so—"

"It… it was me who accepted the alliance…" I said. Madara's face turned red. Was it this easy for him to lose his patience? He seemed completely calm and collected for the most part in that devil room.

"I'm going to train you specifically. I will only allow you one month to get stronger. When that one month ends and you aren't strong enough then I'm sending you and your men back," Madara hissed. I blinked my eyes and looked down at Madara's feet. He still wore his sandals and they were muddy.

"Oi, you're getting dirt in my room," I complained. Madara stayed silent. I looked up at him and saw that he was staring at me blankly. He still looked kinda mean of course.

"What?" I asked.

Madara opened the door to my room.

"One month," he said and slammed the door behind him.

"Good, that's all I need," I whispered.


	3. Chapter 3

Today was supposed to be the start of my training. I say 'was' because when Madara had sent me a message of where to meet him he didn't show up. I stood by the gates of the compound for nearly an hour, watching as Uchiha passed me by, not even giving me a glance. This was irritating. Wasn't Madara supposed to be some great ninja? What great ninja is late for training?

"Lady Takeo!"

Akio…

I watched as he ran over to me, carrying bundles of scrolls. My eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. If he was going to start stealing the Uchiha secrets shouldn't he do this privately? Akio rushed over to me, panting. I immediately latched onto his shoulders to keep him from falling over. I pulled up the sleeve to my shirt and dabbed at his forehead.

"A-Akio… those scrolls…" I mumbled weakly as I continued dabbing his forehead. Akio's cheeks were flushed and he looked so cute.

"I'm having him study them," a voice said out of nowhere. I screamed and jumped. Izuna was standing behind me, a smile on his face.

"Akio is very intelligent. There's always room for improvement though," Izuna stated. I looked over to Akio who seemed embarrassed. His cheeks were still flushed and he had a pout. "Akio is one of the smartest members in our clan…. It's hard to see he needs improvement," I muttered. Akio's face brightened a little.

"Of course, but wait… wasn't Madara supposed to be here?" Izuna questioned. He scratched his head in confusion and looked around. I shrugged my shoulders. "Should I go look for him?" I asked. Izuna thought over my question for a moment and slowly nodded his head. "If you want. Although, I would recommend waiting here," he said. "Okay, got it," I answered. Izuna gave me a small smile and looked at Akio. "We should take our leave. We still have quite a few things to go over," he chuckled. Akio sighed, but followed after Izuna when he started walking away.

Now I was alone. Madara had assigned some off duty Uchiha to train my men, and Mori had been paired up with another muscle freak. They must be having fun. Although, this training must be good for us in someway it distracted us from our mission. How were we supposed to steal anything? I guess Akio is already in the process by studying whatever Izuna gave him, but still…

Looking around, I still saw no Madara and sighed. Screw it, I'll just look around the compound and see what I find.

It's been three days since I've been here. The second day was a free day for us. We were allowed to get used to our surroundings. As I walked around on the second day I saw an important looking structure. I saw a lot of Uchiha walking in and out of there with scrolls. It was library now that I think of it.

Maybe there was something in there I could take?

This whole mission had me thinking I would be sneaking into top secret buildings, hide in the shadows, and fight for my life as I try to run off with the knowledge of an important jutsu… but no… I'm just looking in a public library.

Finally finding the building, I casually walked in and immediately headed to the back. There's gotta be important stuff in the back right? When I got there I saw that the shelves were covered in dust and there were bins full of scrolls on the floor. I picked one up and saw that it was ripped. I tried to read it, but I wasn't able to.

Maybe they just store trash back here…

I looked at the shelves and felt discouraged to pick anything up with that amount of dust on it. Maybe this wasn't going to be so easy. I walked out of the section groaned. How was I supposed to steal super dangerous secrets when I couldn't find any?

I walked to a different section of the library that seemed more popular and upkeep. I managed to find a scroll, but instead of battle plans or jutsu it was just a poem, It talked of someone being lonely and desperate for attention. I rolled my eyes after reading it.

I've seen better poems.

There were only poems in this whole section. Some talked about war and others talked about friendship. I spent nearly an hour in that section just looking. Even though the poems were strange I still liked some aspect of them. The amount of time I spent in that section finally earned me some looks from others. Although, this seemed to be a popular section in the library the amount of time I spent here seemed unusual to some. Stuffing some scrolls under my arm, I kept my eyes down and made my way out of the library.

These would be nice to read in my spare time.

I still needed to find Madara though. I rushed to the barracks to drop off the scrolls.

Without even noticing anything I had bumped into someone. The scrolls flew away from me and I gasped as I watched the delicate paper tumble on the dirt ground.

"Isoroku."

"Eh?"

I looked up and saw Madara. He stared down at me. He seemed annoyed, but shouldn't I be the one annoyed?

"I asked you to wait at the gate—"

"And I did!" I exclaimed. Madara's face dropped for a second and soon picked up again into a scowl. "Listen—"

"You are an hour late, Madara…" another voice sighed. I raised an eyebrow and saw as a girl stepped around Madara to stand by his side. She was pretty and tall. Her hair was long like Madara's and dark. But she didn't look Uchiha; she wasn't mean looking and her eyes weren't dark like the others. They were a nice green color.

"Who said you could interrupt me?" Madara glared, but the girl shook her head and smiled at me, like she was apologizing. "Forgive me, Madara was late because of me," she said as she bowed her head. I blinked my eyes and watched as Madara continued to glare at the girl, but she simply brushed it off with a smile. Eventually Madara stopped glaring and just rolled his eyes.

Madara's hair was more messier than normal and his skin seemed a bit pink. I trailed my eyes over him saw that his clothes were put on in a rush. There were buttons placed in the wrong hole and his shirt wasn't tucked in all the way. Madeira noticed my staring and gave a low grunt to catch my attention.

Was he just finishing a booty call?

Wait, that's not important! Who is this chick?

"You're not…" I began, but the girl grinned,

"I'm from a different clan. A lot more smaller than the Uchiha or yours, but Madara had asked for an alliance so here I am," she sighed. Madara rolled his eyes again. Wow, I guess the Uchiha are eager to jump to alliances. She was pretty too; I wouldn't blame Madara for wanting to be allied with her.

"I-I see…" I muttered. I looked down at the ground and remembered the scrolls. I blushed and immediately started picking them up. "Sorry! I was at the library and found some stuff to read!" I apologized. I quickly bundled up the dirty scrolls in my arms and bowed slightly. "Wait for me at the gate, Madara! I'm just gonna go drop these off!" I said as I ran to the barracks.

I heard him yell something, but he immediately stopped as the girl began to laugh.

"You kept me wait, Isoroku."

I panted as I ran up to Madara. He was dressed in loose fitted clothing as he waited for me at the gate.

"You kept me waiting longer," I pouted. Madara glared at me. "Didn't I tell you not to get friendly with me?" he barked. I flinched at the sudden loudness of his voice and stepped away from him. Madara noticed and crossed his arms at me. "I'm not. I'm just stating the truth…" I argued weakly. Although, it was promised that the Uchiha wouldn't use my clan's birth defects against me and my men I was still wary of them. Izuna was okay, but Madara still had me worried. I was afraid of him, but I couldn't help but snap back at him sometimes.

"Whatever, lets go," he said as he walked passed the gates. I followed after him.

-

Madara had taken me far away from the compound. I began to get a little worried that he was going to just jump me at some point now that we were alone and I was clearly vulnerable, but he took me to what I would guess is a training ground. It was quite big and had a vast amount of water nearby. Running over to the water, I kneeled down and ran my finger against it. I smiled, but I dropped it when I heard a 'tsk' from behind. Why does he have to be such a mood killer?

"Can you focus your chakra?" Madara asked me. "Not really," I said as I looked over my shoulder. Madara nodded his head and came to my side.

He stared off into the distance. I looked up at him and then back down at the water. "You know, I've always liked the water, but I never learned how to swim," I shared as I picked up some rocks and threw it across. They didn't skip.

"Hn."

"So, when is our training going to start?" I asked. Madara looked down at me and smirked. I forced a smile back and watched as his hand came towards me. I gasped and leaped away from him, barely missing his grasp. I backed away from him and watched as he began to chuckle… MENACINGLY! I quickly scrambled to my feet and tried to escape, but he was too quick an appeared in front of me. He grabbed a hold of my shirt and gripped it tight. I tried to make him let go, but he was too strong.

"This is my favorite shirt, Jerk! Lemme go!" I yelled as he lifted me up. My feet dangled as he walked across the water. He stopped when we were in the middle of the water.

"Today is the day you learn to either control your chakra, or learn how to swim, Isoroku."

"What kind of medieval shit is this? You can't just drop someone in water and expect them to just stay above it!" I yelled. I heard a rip and I began to freak. "My shirt is ripping! Stop, Madara!" I begged as I pounded on his chest. He just stared at me with a blank look. I tried to kick him in the balls, but he held me up too high, so I couldn't reach his lower regions.

"Madara!" I yelled.

"Ready, Isoroku?"

"My name is Takeo, you assho—"

Before I could finish my shirt ripped and I fell into the water.


	4. Chapter 4

"ASSHOLE!" I screamed as I struggled to keep my body above the water. I had my chakra focused to the palms of my hands to keep me above, but it was hard to keep focus when I felt like I was gonna die at any minute. I've only done this like three times, this being the third. Why only three times you ask? Well, it's plain and simple… I don't like doing this kind of ninja shit!

I looked up at Madara, teeth clenched and quite ready to rip out his balls. He smirked down at me and pressed his sandal against my hand.

"Stop it, I'm gonna fall in!" I yelled as I struggled to lift my leg above water. I managed to focus enough chakra to my foot and keep it above the water. I used my free hand that wasn't being stepped on to swap away Madara's gross ass foot. Slowly lifting myself above the water, I panted when I finally was out. My lower body was completely soaked, but above was dry. Thank god, my hair is a mess when it's wet. I heard Madara chuckle, but I didn't care at the moment. I was too exhausted. Out of the corner of my eye I saw my ripped shirt floating away from me. I pursed my lips and looked at Madara. Grabbing onto his pants, I shakily pulled myself up and latched my arms around his torso. He grunted in dissatisfaction.

"Get off me, Isoroku!" he barked. I shook my head. "Get me out of here!" I yelled as I buried my face into his shirt. My body was shaking from the cold water and I felt my chakra vanishing. If I didn't hold onto him I would fall through any minute now.

"I can't swim…" I muttered. I heard Madara give a 'tsk' and slowly he walked me back to land before my chakra completely depleted. I pulled away from him and hugged my body. "My shirt is gone because of you," I muttered. Madara rolled his eyes. "You have to give me something to wear," I huffed. I wore bandages around my chest to keep these lady lumps hidden, but I wasn't about to go walking through the forest like this.

"I have nothing—wait, what is that?" Madara asked as he pointed at me. I glared and hugged my body tighter. "Boobs?" I asked sarcastically, but Madara waved me off and stepped towards me.

"Not those, that," he said reaching towards my hip. I flinched and backed away from him. Was this guy crazy? He can't just touch me like that! I felt my heart beat erratically as Madara gave me a weird look. He seemed trapped in his own thoughts, not even caring of how scared I looked.

"It's nothing—"

"Nothing important?" Madara finished. I glared at him. Madara had seen my birth defect. He didn't actually see it because I keep a seal on top of it to keep people from touching it, but… well… you get the point. He saw it and is now curious about it.

Madara stared at me.

And now I must kill him.

Sike! Like I could kill this gorilla.

"You keep a seal on your birth mark?" Madara questioned. I nodded my head slowly, making sure to keep my distance. Madara noticed and rolled his eyes. "I won't touch it, Isoroku. You were already explained that," he sighed, but I shook my head at him. "Doesn't matter," I mumbled. I backed away from him even more.

"What is the point of that seal?" Madara asked coming closer to me. I held my hand out to stop him. My teeth were either clattering from the cold or from how scared I was. I couldn't believe him. Why would I trust a man like him? I've heard nothing but ruthless stories about the Uchiha.

Madara kept coming closer. My legs were wobbling and I felt like I was going to piss my pants at any minute. I heard of what it felt like to have your birth defect touched. I was told that it hurts, hurts like hell, and that having your chakra drained felt like the blood from your body was being sucked out of you, giving you no strength to get away.

Madara's chest came in contact with my palm. I flinched when he grabbed a hold of my hand and tugged me closer to him. I shrieked as I was pulled against him.

"Don't touch me," I whispered, but Madara didn't answer me. His hand snaked its way to my waist and tugged at the seal. I was paralyzed. I just hugged my body and shut my eyes tight as the seal was ripped off my hip.

"Go over to the water now."

I opened my eyes and stared up at Madara. He looked determined of some sorts.

"W-what?"

"I want you to go walk on the water, now, Takeo."

I paused for a minute. "You called me Takeo," I murmured. Madara didn't acknowledge pointed at the water and I took the hint.

I slowly backed away from him and walked to the water. What was happening here? He just ripped off my seal, wasn't he going to drain my chakra?

My feet touched the water. I stared down at it and looked back at Madara. He nodded his head at me, almost assuring me that I could walk on the water again.

I wasn't sure what was going on, but I focused chakra to my feet. I was surprised by the new energy I felt. The glow around my feet didn't seem weak like it usually did; it looked brighter, and stronger. I slowly walked across the body of water until I was in the middle. I turned around and looked at Madara who had his arms crossed. He had a smirk on his face.

I was confused. Why was he smirking at me?

"What's the deal here?" I snapped.

"This seal was holding back a significant amount of your chakra, at least that's what I was guessing when I first saw it," he called out. I noticed my seal was now on the ground besides his feet.

"Your seal was supposed to keep from people getting to your birthmark, correct?" Madara asked as he walked over to me. I nodded my head.

"Well, it was a poorly developed seal and only needed a small portion of my chakra to make it come off. It did give me a surprisingly strong shock though," Madara said as he stared at his hand.

"So you're… not going to…"

Madara looked at me. "No, I told you I wouldn't. This is the last time I'm going to say this," he said sternly. I felt my eyes water up. I quickly wiped away my tears and latched myself onto Madara. I pressed the side of my face against him and released a choked sob.

"Thank you so much, Madara! I promise to work harder and to annoy you less!" I cried as snot dribbled from my nose. I felt relieved to finally see that he wasn't going to suck out my chakra like a vampire. I hugged him tighter when he tried to pull away. "I completely judged you without even getting to see your nice side! I'm sorry! I mean, well, you're still kinda a jerk and look really scary, but I won't be so scared anymore!" I howled.

"Isoroku!"

"Madara!"

"You're getting your snot on me!"

My sandals made squishy sounds as we walked back to the compound. After my sob fest Madara had shoved me away and the force caught me off guard and I fell through the water. I was quickly saved though and Madara had told me it was time to finally head back.

Madara is still a jerk, and he's still mean looking, but there's a nice side to him that can be shown at times. I almost felt a little bad about the mission.

"You're too slow, keep up," Madara barked.

Almost.

"Yes," I sighed and jogged over to his side. He glared at everything up ahead. He was back to his scary looking self.

Maybe he was just embarrassed that his nipples were pointy.

"Thanks for letting me use your shirt," I mumbled. Madara ignored me and continued on walking.

"It kinda smells though. I'll wash it before I return it. You also have this weird stain at the bottom…" I muttered as I scratched at it. Madara quickly grabbed my hands and looked a bit rattled up. "Just give it back to me when we reach the gates," he said. I raised an eyebrow at him. "You want me to walk through the compound shirtless? Just let me wash it for you. Don't know what you're so embarrassed about… it's just a stain—Oh!" I gasped as I yanked my hands away from him. I quickly remembered the booty call.

"Y-you nasty freak," I hissed as I quickly moved to take off the shirt. Madara shouted something incoherent and stopped me from taking off the shirt.

"Keep it on!"

"Did you use this to clean things up? I don't want to wear something you used, Nasty!" I yelled as I fought against him. Madara's face flushed a bit and he shot me a glare as he struggled to keep my arms down.

"Isoroku!"

"My name is Takeo!"

"Keep the shirt on, Takeo!"

"Is… is there a problem?" a new voice asked. Madara and I stopped fighting and turned to see Izuna. He had his head tilted and a frown was on his face. I took my chance and broke free from Madara. I ran over to Izuna and stuck my tongue out at him.

"This guy is a freak!" I sneered. Madara glared and pointed a finger at me; "Don't talk to me like that after I helped you out!"

"Don't give me a shirt with a sex stain!"

Madara froze and looked at Izuna and I back to back. His finger slowly dropped and a glare was back on his face.

"Listen here—"

"You are truly disgusting, Brother…"

I looked at Izuna.

"You guys are brothers?" I asked.

"Oh my God," I heard Madara groan.


	5. Chapter 5

"Duck."

I ducked down.

"To the right, now."

I quickly rolled to the right and missed a kick from Madara. I lost my balance and fell back on my butt. Before I had time to get up Madara's foot came up and connected with my jaw. I heard a crunch, and a numb feeling quickly spread through my body. I fell back from the impact and heard a poof.

Madara's clone must've disappeared. We were combat training. Madara made a clone and had me fight him, while the real him stood behind and gave me orders on what to do. I have no experience with fighting so he wanted me to at least get to know simple movements that would help me out in a real fight. These simple movements were a real workout for me though, my body is probably covered with bumps and bruises and now I can't feel my jaw.

"Open your mouth."

Madara's face came into view, blocking the sky.

That's what he said…

I attempted to part my lips, but it felt too heavy. I felt an excruciating pain and squeezed my eyes as I quickly gave up on the actions. I heard Madara give a sigh and I felt a bottle against my lips. I felt liquid push past my lips and quickly the taste of rotten meat touched my tongue. My eyes widened in shock and my body shook, but Madara held me down. I attempted to spit it out, but he plugged my nose and pressed his hand against my mouth. The pressure from his hand created more pain for me and I couldn't help but groan in pain.

"Swallow it," he ordered.

I stared at him.

That's definitely what he said.

Finally I gave in. I swallowed that disgusting liquid. Madara rolled his eyes, clearly annoyed with me. "The healing process is going to speed up now. If you weren't so clumsy you wouldn't have had to drink this, Isoroku," he muttered. I looked away from him and stared up at the sky.

"You're going to stay here now. I have a meeting."

I quickly looked back at him, shocked that this gorilla was going to leave me alone at the training ground injured. Madara seemingly read my mind and gave me a scowl.

"You're already wasting my time by having me train you, I'm not going to waste more time by babysitting you now."

I didn't even ask for you to train me, Gorilla head!

"When the healing is done you can either stay here and train more like you should, or go back to barracks. If you know what's good for you you'll stay here and train…" He said as he squinted his eyes at me. I glared and forced myself not to give him the middle finger. He was being such a prick! Why would he leave such a cute girl like me alone in a forest?

Madara then walked away. I groaned and attempted to get up, but my body was still weak. I plopped back down on the ground and winced at the pain. That drink Madara gave me was supposed to heal me, why am I still in pain?

He probably poisoned me and is leaving me here to die.

I wouldn't be surprised... Madara doesn't like me a lot. He's always looking down on me, and even though I'm used to it back home… I don't like someone from a clan other than mine doing it. It's weird, I don't know how to explain it. I'm a lot more vocal with him than my clan… and I'm surprised I'm still here with all the back talking I'm doing. Madara is surprisingly patient with that.

I wonder how Jiro is doing with the mission? He must have gotten a lot of things from the Senju by now. I closed my eyes.

He must be home already. Mom must have made him the leader of the clan by now. Ruled out that I'll die sooner or later by these Uchiha and thus made him eligible to rule the clan. It's not like I wanted to be the leader anyway…

I inhaled deeply and finally relaxed my tense body. I felt myself grow sleepy and I gave in. It probably isn't the best idea to go ahead and sleep out here, but I'm beaten up and feel kind of sorry for myself, so what the heck?

I shifted slightly and knocked out.

\- 

Takeo leaned back and rested against the wall. She watched as Jiro, her younger brother, trained with their father. She held a doll in her lap and slowly combed her fingers through the hair. "Try to stretch your leg out more," Tomio grinned. Jiro fell down on his knees after the attempted high kick and nodded his head weakly. "I think that's enough for today, Jiro. I need to prepare for the mission tomorrow," Tomio chuckled as he reached down to pick up the boy. He easily plopped Jiro down on his shoulder and walked over to Takeo. He stuck out his hand and the girl quickly grabbed it. "You'll train me more when you come back, right?" Jiro asked. Tomio hummed in response, and smiled down at Takeo.

"Should I train your brother?" he asked. Takeo made a face and shook her head.

"He's been training too much. He's going to end up looking like Mori," she spat. Tomio snickered and led his children back home.

"Looks like you should rest for awhile, Jiro. Why don't we have your mother book train you for a bit? You need to be smart too."

Jiro groaned childishly and glared at down at his sister. Takeo stuck her tongue out and quickly looked away.

"Why don't you train Takeo? All she does is sleep and eat," Jiro sneered. Tomio's eyes widened and he looked down at Takeo. "That's true, should I train you when I get back?" he chuckled. Takeo quickly shook her head.

"A little training won't hurt. I can show you how to beat up all the boys," Tomio grinned.

The three walked through the compound. Tomio kept his eyes straight ahead and tried his best to ignore the stares and smiles from the other clansmen, but couldn't help the blush that was rising to his cheeks.

"Ah, father your face is kinda red…"

"O-oh? Maybe I've been in the sun too long…" Tomio chuckled nervously.

"Why is everyone smiling? It's creepy," Takeo muttered. Jiro glared at his sister.

"Because they love father, stupid."

"O-oi, that's not necessary, Jiro…" Tomio sighed.

-

I opened my eyes and looked around.

The sky was darker.

How long was I asleep?

I attempted to sit up, but my body was too heavy. I groaned and closed my eyes. "I'm going to die out here…" I whined. I heard a crunch and my eyes widened. Was Madara here? That gorilla must've had a change of heart and came back to get me.

"I thought that medicine was supposed to heal up the process, you dick! I can't even get up now!" I yelled. Madara gave no response. I frowned. "Hey, what the hell?" I asked as the footsteps came closer.

Wait, what if that isn't Madara?

Oh shit, I am gonna die out here!

"Stop!" I screamed. The footsteps stopped.

I paused for a second. "If… you're friendly then help a girl out. I can't even get up, some dick punched me and made me swallow this disgusting medicine that was supposed to heal me, but I can't even move now," I said.

"You are incapable of moving?" A deep voice asked. I raised my eyebrows in surprise.

"What a daddy voice…" I whispered to myself.

"I heard that."

"A-ah, sorry… can you help me out, mysterious voice?" I asked. Immediately the person appeared in front of me, staring down at me. I stared up at him and took in the sight. He looked so serious, and his hair was white, what the hell? He must be stressed out for his hair to be that white.

"You kinda rock that turtleneck… kinda," I said. The person released a low sigh and bent down to reach me. "Are you a doctor?" I asked. The man shook his head and reached down to the pouch strapped around his waist. He took out a vial and shook out two round pills. I groaned and moved my head away as he brought them to my mouth. "I've taken enough shitty medicine today, thank you!" I barked.

"It'll give you back your strength for a short amount of time. It should be enough to get you back to where you came," the man explained. I squinted my eyes. "You promise, homeboy?" I asked. The man looked at me confused.

"Will it really help me? Cuz last time I was told that it was a lie…"

The man sighed. He was getting tired of me obviously, but it was fun messing with him.

"Yes."

I opened my mouth and the man popped in the two pills. I quickly swallowed them.

"So when does it kick in?" I asked. The man stayed silent and then nodded his head. "Now," he stated. I quickly sat up. My body didn't feel heavy. I felt like I was at top strength. I looked around my body and noticed the bruises were still there. I frowned.

"It won't heal your injuries, it just masks the pain and allows you to continue on," the man stated. I nodded my head and smiled at him. "Thank you," I gushed.

"I thought I was going to be there for awhile," I cried, but I stopped and paused for a moment. Why did he help me? This is kind of weird. You don't just meet random nice people out in the forest… especially during these times. I looked over to the man and pursed my lips. I then looked at his faceplate and caught sight of a monster. My mouth dropped and I stomped closer to the man. He looked at me cautiously, seemingly ready to fight me, but I shook my hands at him. "N-no, hold still! I just saw my reflection in your faceplate thing!" I yelled.

I came closer and felt my heart plummet at the sight. My face was swollen. I looked like an ugly raspberry. I slapped my hands onto my puffy cheeks and screamed as loud as I could. I looked like a monster! How did this happen? Madara didn't do that damage to me. The man stared at me as if I was stupid.

"A-ah, my beautiful face! How am I supposed to find a cute rich man to marry now?" I whimpered as tears spilled down my face. That was my only ticket out of my crazy clan. I was going to marry a rich ordinary man and live a regular life. I stomped my foot and crossed my arms. "My future is ruined forever," I grumbled. The man sighed and I suddenly remembered his presence. "You may want to start heading back to where you're from. The pill won't last long," he reminded me. I looked back at his headplate and studied it for a moment.

"Everyone is going to make fun of me! Especially that damn gorilla…" I grunted in frustration. I could just see now in my head Madara pointing his finger at me and laughing. Calling me rude names and such. The man ignored me and looked up at the sky. "It's getting dark. It'll be dangerous if you stay out longer," he warned. I opened my mouth to complain, but he cut me off. "I need to be leaving as well," he muttered. He nodded his head at me and before I could say anything else he vanished. Like, literally vanished. I heard a whisp of wind and he was gone. My hair fluttered slightly with the breeze and I couldn't help but groan. I was all alone again.

I slowly turned away and made my way back to the compound. I shoved my hands in my pockets as I walked in silence.

His headplate had a weird looking symbol on it. I wonder what clan he's from.

I pushed back some branches that were in my way as I cut through the forest to get onto a trail. Is he from a nobody clan like me?


	6. Chapter 6

It's been three days since I resembled an ugly raspberry. When I made it back to the village Madara was waiting there by the gates, looking annoyed, of course. The minute he saw my face though was a sight. I've never seen a man look so scared before.

I was allergic to whatever medicine he gave me apparently, at least, that's what the doctors told me… him… both of us. Madara had rushed me to someone to get treated and stayed afterwards to scold me. He told me that it was my fault, that if I had just focused a little harder then he wouldn't have landed so many hits on me and be forced to use the medication.

I would have rolled my eyes if they weren't so swollen. The doctor had told me to rest for the next few days and I've gotten better on the second, but I want to see how long I can pull this sick facade.

"Takeo…"

I looked to my door and Akio was peering through. I motioned him to come in.

"How are you feeling?" He asked.

I coughed and pulled the sheets up to my nose. "Terrible, I just might die," I croaked. Akio smiled and walked over to me. He grabbed my blankets and yanked them down. I gasped and covered up with my pillow.

"I know you better than that," he chuckled. I frowned and pulled the blankets back up.

"Don't tell anybody," I ordered.

Akio sighed.

"How are you supposed to train if you're supposedly sick?" he asked. I smirked. "That's the whole point. If I'm sick then I can't train."

"If you don't train then you can't do your mission."

I slammed my hands onto my ears and glared. "Don't remind me! I haven't even started…" I mumbled. My room was filled with scrolls, with poems, I found in the library. That's as far as my snooping is gonna go. I was basically leaving it to everyone else to find something, how shameful of me.

Akio pursed his lips and sat down on my bed. "I haven't found anything either, at least not in the aspect that your mother had in mind," he admitted softly. I looked at him. Akio continued, "She wanted us to… steal… information… to actually take scrolls whatever they had, but I haven't done any of that." Akio grinned.

"Izuna has been teaching me a lot of things, many things that I didn't know of. He's training me, Takeo… just like what Madara is doing for you. If you can learn something from him then you are doing what you came here to do, okay?" he asked. I looked away.

"Whatever he teaches you make sure to learn well so you can bring it to the clan."

Akio stood up from my bed and headed to my door.

"I would suggest that you get out of bed today and go meet Madara. He's been waiting outside for an hour now," Akio muttered as he left the room. I sighed.

Was it really that easy? Just train and you'll do your mission?

I threw myself back down on my bed and stared up at the ceiling. I traced over the wood, procrastinating on getting out of bed. Finally, my eyes made it's way to the small window that was too high up for anyone to look up at. It was the only source of light, but it wasn't much. The window is small and no one can reach it, not even Mori.

I pursed my lips.

Then I thought of Madara.

Was he really waiting for me? He's too mean to wait for me. If anything that Gorilla was spending his time yelling at poor civilians.

Akio wouldn't lie about something like that though…

I sighed and slowly kicked off my blankets. I rolled off the bed and headed to the corner of my room where a pair of shorts rested. I slipped those on and made my way to the door. A pair of worn out shoes rested there, and I grabbed them as I exited my room.

As I exited the barracks I saw Madara.

He had his back to me.

I paused for a moment, wondering if I should run back inside. I felt like a big argument was going to happen. He was going to yell at me for taking too long to get out of bed, he shouldn't be wasting his time on me, blablabla.

Forget that.

I slowly began to backup. I can just pretend to be sick

A branch cracked. My heart stopped and Madara's head twitched.

"No more faking it, Isoroku…" he said. My eyes widened as he turned around. He glared at me and stormed over to me. My breath hitched up to my throat and I didn't have time to escape, Madara was already up in my face. He squinted his eyes at me, as if he was trying to shoot laser beams into me. I smiled nervously and held my hands up in defeat.

"Sorry? I just wanted to make sure I was better before I can… uh… give it my all!" I said as I pumped my fist into the air excitedly. I hoped he bought that.

He continued to stare at me. I don't think he bought my bullshit.

"You moron," he whispered viciously as he bopped me on the head. I yelped in pain and covered my head. My head throbbed as I rubbed it to sooth the pain. Why is he so bitter and evil inside?

"I'm still weak, you stupid gorilla," I grumbled as I dropped my hands. Madara smirked and raised an eyebrow, "You were always weak, stupid."

His eyes then squinted again. I rolled my eyes.

"What now?"

Madara stayed silent and stared at me with that weird look of his.

His hand reached up to touch my forehead and I flinched.

"Don't hit me!" I barked.

"Your forehead."

"Do I have a pimple or something?"

Madara gave me an annoyed look. "No, that scar," he said as he quickly jabbed at the right side of my forehead. I didn't have time to deflect his hand and flinched from his touch. What was this guy going on about now?

"I've had it since I was a kid," I answered as I covered it up with my hand. I glared and moved around him. "Lets not focus on my appearance and just go train," I muttered. The scar was not something I liked for people to see. It made me look weird.

"Isoroku," Madara called sternly. The tone in his voice literally stabbed my eardrums. Why was he being annoying right now? I turned around, my hand still covering my forehead.

"Yes?" I asked. Madara paused for a moment, it caught me off guard because this was the first time I've seen him with a facial expression that didn't seem angry. It looked like he wanted to go into more detail about my scar, but he was holding it back. He looked constipated, very constipated.

"Nevermind," he finally muttered after enough staring. He dropped his look and walked past me. His stride was fast, I had to jog to keep up.

What's up with him?

-

"Your aim is off."

I held in a groan and aimed another star at the tree trunk.

"You didn't even come close to the mark."

I stopped throwing the stars and turned back to look at Madara. He was sitting on the gravel, with a bored expression on his face. I guess this is his idea of training? Sitting and watching me throw ninja stars at a tree all day…?

"Why don't you help me then," I snapped.

Madara rolled his eyes and I turned to face the tree again. How was I supposed to take this information and give it to my clan?

Oh, this is how you throw a ninja star. The evil gorilla Madara showed me how to do this.

Like this will be helpful to the clan.

I stared down at the tool in my hand. I could probably steal these and take them home with me. I didn't get any cool jutsu, but I got… ninja stars. I chuckled at the thought of showing these to mom. She wouldn't yell at me or anything, she would just look at me and shake her head. I'd rather her yell at me.

I sighed.

Suddenly a hand wrapped around mine. I gasped and looked to my left to see Madara giving me an irritated look. "Extend your arm," he ordered. I followed and he held it as he moved it back and forth in a swinging motion.

"You are too stiff when you throw, you need to let your body be more relaxed to get a perfect shot," he explained. I looked away.

It's hard to be relaxed when you're this close to me…

Madara's scent filled my nose. It was nature smell, he smelled like pine trees. It wasn't bad, but it's not my prefered smell on a man.

"Are you paying attention?" Madara barked. I blinked my eyes and looked up at him and nodded my head. He shook his head and continued teaching me.

"You want to release the star smoothly, and don't make your arm stiff."

I nodded my head and tried my best to relax.

"On three you're going to release it."

"Got it."

"1...2...3."

I released the star and it struck the tree.

It didn't hit the mark, but it made it pretty close compared to my other attempts.

"Your arm was still stiff, but you did better," Madara said as he dropped my arm. I grinned at him and he gave me a weird look. "So I just have to be wiggly and loose in order to make a perfect hit?" I asked. Madara breathed in sharply and looked away irritably. "Something like that…" he muttered. "I wouldn't use stupid words like that though," he added quietly. He stepped away from me and gestured to try again, but this time on my own. I wiggled my arms and shot him a smirk. "Be prepared to be amazed, Gorilla. I'm a fast learner," I said as I turned towards the tree. I picked up a ninja star laying by my feet and raised my arm to throw it. Just nice and loose, right?

I threw the star and watched as it soared into the tree. It didn't hit the mark, but again it was pretty close. I placed my hands on hips and turned to face Madara who had his arms crossed, looking unamused.

"You are a fast learner. If you trained harder and paid more attention before coming here you probably wouldn't have had to waste my time by teaching you the basics," Madara said boredly. I pursed my lips and looked away.

"Dad... " I whispered. Madara frowned at me.

"I'm not your-"

"My dad stopped my training after I turned 7. I can't remember, but I had an accident and after that he made me stop," I whispered. I brought my fingers up to my forehead and brushed away the strands of hair I would use to purposely cover my scar. I looked at Madara. "Since you seemed so interested in it earlier… I apparently got this scar from the accident," I shared. Madara nodded his head.

"I understand."

I dropped my hand and sighed. "So, I'm sorry for wasting your time. After my training stopped… I hardly ever did anything physical, my dad wanted to make sure another accident didn't happen," I murmured. The memories of having servants run around doing whatever I asked filled my head. I'm not going to lie and say I hated it because I didn't. Having someone do everything that was deemed too hard for you was a wonderful thing, but in the end it just made me lazy and made others look down on me, including my mom and brother.

My eyes got warm, and began to get blurry. I quickly brought my hand up to cover them.

"It was nice to not have to do anything, but I was lonely," I choked. I wiped viciously at the tears that flowed down my cheeks. "Everyone saw me as the weak daughter who couldn't do anything. They looked down on me and would be kind, but once I turned my back they would say so many horrible things. They made an effort to stay out of my way and I couldn't do anything about it," I wept.

"Takeo."

He just said my name.

I dropped my hands and looked up at Madara. His fist was coming fast at me, I immediately dodged it and out of reflex I hit back. I moved to hit his gut, but Madara caught my hand. He gripped it tightly and stared me down.

"Crying over the past isn't going to help you. Use your pain to your advantage. Use it as motivation to get stronger."

I couldn't look at him any longer. His eyes were swallowing me whole, I felt like I was going to drown in them. I took back my fist and held it.

"I will…" I whispered.

Madara stood there for a minute more and he finally moved. He reached out to move the strands of hair on my forehead. I blushed and stared down at my feet.

"Okay, let's head back now," he said as he quickly took back his hand and led the way back to the compound. I looked up and followed after him.

Once I got close to him I pressed my hand against his back and used the other to grip his arm. He rejected the contact, but I rested my weight against him to stop him.

"Thank you, Madara."

He stopped rejecting.


	7. Chapter 7

Scrolls surrounded me in a circle as if I was doing some sort of ritual. I was sprawled out on the floor, reading whatever was in reach. I was finding more and more poems, in that library I found when I first got here. They didn't have an author, just a bunch of words scribbled onto the paper.

The ones in my possession talked about friendship and being alone. There were others talking about war and how a soldier dances on the field, but I didn't want to read that so I didn't bring it back to the barracks with me. I liked the softer ones that seemed more emotional, that talked about the struggles of being a human.

They made me feel sad, but more and more seemed to be coming in lately, so I didn't have to worry about running out.

I heard my door creak open and I looked to see Mori standing there.

"I was walking and saw the light still on in your room. Why aren't you sleeping?" He asked. I reached to grab a scroll and held it up. "I woke up early for training and decided to read," I stated.

"Who are you and what did you do to Takeo?" he questioned. I smiled and looked at the scroll in my hand. "I enjoy reading these, it makes me feel better," I murmured as I traced over the words over and over. The writing was so neat, so fine. You could tell a woman was writing this.

"I know we shouldn't have any friends here, but reading this makes me feel like I do have one," I whispered. My heart fluttered at the thought of having a female friend here. A girl I could talk to about my feelings. Someone I could gush over stupid things with. I couldn't help but smile at the thought of a pretty girl waiting for me outside the barracks so we could hangout, or a girl waiting for me by the gates as I come back from training with Madara.

I looked back at the door and saw Mori was gone. I sat up and groaned.

Men are the worst, I concluded.

I looked towards the small window and saw the sun was starting to come out. I stood up and dropped the scroll on my bed and left my room.

Of course, Madara was outside waiting for me.

He looked at me curiously. "You didn't keep me waiting…" he muttered. I smiled and he frowned.

"You're scaring me now," he said as he looked at me up and down.

"I'm just in a good mood, what's wrong with that?" I asked as I led the way to the gates. I swayed my arms at the thought of a friend waiting for me after training was over. I wish I could find whoever was writing those poems, I wanted to be their friend so bad it was making my heart hurt, but at the same time I was at bliss; I couldn't help but walk as if I was on a cloud.

"Isoroku," Madara called out. I turned around and looked at him.

He paused for a moment.

"You're too happy," he muttered with a disgusted look as he walked past me. I blinked my eyes and caught up to him.

-

Training was over before I knew it. Madara wrapped my hands in bandages and had me practice my punching on this tree. There was a cushion on it so I wasn't completely suffering, but I was doing it for so long that by the end of it my knuckles were starting to bleed through the wrapping.

I sat on the grass, slowly unwrapping the bandages from my hands. I was hissing from the stinging pain. Madara was standing to the side, his back towards me.

As I finished unwrapping my left hand I moved to right. I haven't checked the library in a while for a new poem. I smiled at the thought. I looked up at Madara and saw he was already looking at me. I blushed and looked down, focusing on my hand.

"I need to talk to you, Takeo," he muttered.

I continued unwrapping.

"What happened the other day. With you crying and then hugging my arm after…"

I was almost done now.

"You're acting weird because of it and I want you to get rid of the feelings you have for me."

I stood up from the grass and started walking back to the compound.

"Are you even listening to me?!" Madara shouted. I jumped from his voice and turned around.

"What happened?" I asked, annoyed that he was shouting at me. Madara blinked his eyes and glared. "Were you listening to me?" he barked. I shook. "I have to go to the library, see you tomorrow!" I shouted as I balled up the bloody wrappings and threw them at him. Madara made a face and desperately jumped away to avoid contact. I laughed and turned back around, rushing back to the compound.

"Isoroku!"

-

I sat near the shelf. Scrolls were in a big pile next to me. It was a mess, but I was happy to find two new poems. The ink on it was smudged. I imagined the girl writing this must've accidently run her fingers over the fresh ink. I ran my fingers over the words that talked about a lost friendship. I could feel the pain they felt through the words she wrote. It made me desperate to find the person who wrote this. I would never let the person go if I had the opportunity to be with them.

I swiped away a few tears and set the scroll down to look at the other.

This one had many words crossed out. This one seemed messier than the others I've read. The writing was rushed and there were tears in the paper.

It talked about love. I traced over the words that mentioned heartache and confusion. Love wasn't something I was particularly interested in, but I paid close attention to this poem. The person who wrote this must've been going through a rough patch with someone they held dear to them. The last word in the poem was betrayal. It send shivers down my spine, making me wonder what could have possibly happened.

I held it close to my chest and sighed. "If only I could find you… I wouldn't let that person hurt you again," I whispered softly as I closed my eyes. I tried to imagine what the author looked like. I imagined her having warm eyes, soft hair, and a welcoming smile. I would try my best to keep her safe, keep her happy.

I opened my eyes and started rolling up the scroll along with the other. I needed to go back to the barracks now.

I left the pile of scrolls on the floor and exited the library. I held the two close to my chest, and kept my eyes down. I hardly ever looked any of the other Uchiha's in the eyes. I was too nervous and could feel their judgment.

I gulped down and rushed down the road.

I spent most of my time in the barracks reading when I wasn't training. Everyone else was so busy so I was always alone and Madara never made the effort to come see me after training was done. It's expected though, he still is a leader of the Uchiha so he must have a lot of meetings to go to. I don't think we're in anyway close now that I think about it.

My shoulders clashed with someone. It was hard enough to make me lose grip of my scrolls and send them to the ground. I gasped and quickly moved to pick them up. I grabbed the first one and as I reached to grab the other someone got it. I paused for a moment and looked up slowly.

A girl was holding the scroll and smiling down at me. I blushed and quickly stood up and bowed my head. "I'm sorry!" I apologized as my cheeks flared up. The girl laughed softly and her hand touched my cheek. I flinched at the touch and looked at her.

"I wasn't paying attention either, so I'm sorry as well," she smiled. I looked away and nodded my head.

"You're Takeo… right?" she asked softly. I quickly looked back.

"Y… yes," I answered. She seemed a bit familiar. Her hair was long and dark and she was tall.

Her eyes were green.

I finally realized it. She was Madara's booty call I met on my first day of training.

She is so pretty, why would she waste her time with a gorilla?

"I'm Morina. We've met before, but briefly," she said softly. I nodded my head. My ears were practically burning off. I wanted to go hide, but at the same time I wanted to stay with her. Morina looked down at the scroll in her hand and opened it.

She smiled.

"You like this poet?" she asked looking up at me. I gasped and inched closer to her. "You've read this person's poems? I've been finding them in the library and I wish I knew who they were!" I gushed. I looked down at the poem to admire at with her. She had the one talking about friendship.

"You don't know who they are?" she asked looking at me. I looked up at her and shook my head. I traced my fingers over the words and smiled. "I can almost feel their pain by just touching the paper. I've never felt so connected to someone before, and I don't even know who they are," I whispered. Morina slowly closed the scroll and looked at me.

"I have more with me if you want to read them," she said sweetly. I blushed and nodded my head. She grinned and grabbed my hand, leading me down the road to her home. She walked at a slow pace so I could keep up. I focused on her hand wrapped around mine. I was embarrassed, but I didn't want to let go. Her hand was so small and soft.

We approached a small home that seemed to be far from everyone else like my barracks. We entered and a sweet smile filled my nose. She released my hand and immediately made her way to a drawer. I closed the door behind me and took in the small place. A bed was placed near a large window, and the kitchen off in a corner. She brought out four scrolls from the drawer and made her way to a small table to lay them out. She knelt down and motioned for me to join her.

I quickly made my way over to her. I knelt down and gawked at the scrolls. They were different than the ones in the library. The paper was a better quality; nice and sturdy, but flexible. Mine was weak and dainty.

A pretty red ribbon was holding it together.

I looked at Morina, wondering if it was okay if I could touch it. She nodded her head and brushed a few strands of hair of my shoulder. I blushed and looked down, slowly grabbing one of the scrolls. I nervously pulled at the ribbon and watched as it unrolled in my hand. There was so much writing, mine only had 5 to 7 lines, but this was a full page. There were no smudges, the writing was thin and clean… it made my scrolls look like drafts.

This one talked about love and how the poet should cherish their loved one more. I traced over the words with my fingers. I could feel the affection they had for their lover. The feeling of being so desperate to love the person more was seeping into my fingertips. I didn't like poems about love, but this one was easily one of my favorites now.

Morina smiled at me and rested against the table. "All the others are about love as well," she murmured. I looked at her and back down at the scroll. "I've never seen these in the library before!" I said gushed. Morina grabbed one and looked at it with affection.

"They're too precious for me to just give them to the library."

I blinked my eyes and stared at her.

Morina is so kind and welcoming. I didn't want to leave her side, I just wanted to stay there and talk about stupid things. I wanted to laugh with her and be the reason why she was happy. I wanted to protect her.

Morina was the one writing the poems, wasn't she?

I set the scroll down and grabbed her hands. She looked at me in surprise and then chuckled.

"What's wrong, Takeo?" She asked.

I blushed. Her hands were so soft. Mine were dirty from training today, my knuckles were still gashed from the punching I did and scabs were beginning to form, making them disgusting.

Why wasn't she pulling away from me?

"Morina… I've never been close to many people before, and I'm awkward around strangers… but I want to be close to you," I whispered. My heart was thumping in my chest, I was so nervous, but Morina just smiled at me,

"I want to laugh and talk about stupid things with you… I want to make sure you're safe… will you let me?" I asked. My face was probably so red. I could feel my cheeks and ears burning, but I couldn't look away from her.

Morina nodded her head.

"I want to do the same with you," she whispered as she took her hands out of my grasp and wrapped her arms around me, pulling me in. My chin rested on her shoulder and I immediately hugged her back.

For that moment… I didn't feel so alone anymore.


	8. Chapter 8

"I'm needed somewhere else today. You're going to stay here and train until your muscles give out."

I sat on the grass and watched Madara bark orders at me. He was moody today and wouldn't make eye contact with me. Instead of listening to the list of things I needed to practice I just dozed off into my own thoughts. Why was he in a bad mood today? Did I do something wrong?

I focused my gaze onto my ankles and grabbed at them, holding them tightly. I didn't want to be here, I wanted to go see Morina. She promised she would cook for me.

"You're not even listening to me, Isoroku."

I looked up at Madara. He was staring down at me.

Kneeling down to my level, he pressed his finger onto my forehead and applied pressure. "Don't forget that I gave you a month to get stronger. If you fail to impress me then you're going back home," he said in a low voice. The tone made shivers run down my back.

"Time is running out, Isoroku," he muttered as he shoved me back with his finger. I groaned in pain and glared up at him, but stayed silent. Something was up with him and I was smart enough today to not mess with him. Standing up, Madara gave me a side glance and stalked off without another word. I didn't realize I was holding my breath until he was completely gone.

"What crawled up his ass this morning?" I huffed as I stood up from the grass. I looked around the training area. What was I even supposed to do?

I looked at the body of water and released a sigh. I was still shaky on the whole chakra control, maybe I could practice that? I stalked over to the edge of the water and stared down at it. I still can't swim though, what if I end up falling through? I thought back at what Madara said; if I didn't impress him by the end of the month then I can't stay here. I would be sent back home to mom and she would most definitely banish me from the clan for failing an important mission like this.

I would also leave Morina.

That was something that frightened me the most. Leaving behind someone I can finally be myself with.

Panic surged through my body at the thought of never being able to see her again. I had to get stronger. Not for my clan, or to complete the mission, but so I can stay with Mornia. I nodded my head and gripped my fists tightly. I pumped them up to the sky and released a battle cry.

"FOR MORINAAAA!" I screeched as I focused chakra to my feet and charged onto the water. I felt a new burst of energy explode throughout my body. Knowing I was doing this for someone I care about encouraged me to do this. I need to impress the gorilla in order to be be with the princess.

Yes!

I heard leaves rustle.

I lost concentration and my left foot sank into the water. I was sent down to the water, but before I could fall through I focused chakra to my palms to keep above water. I was panicking again.

"Fuck!" I screamed as I struggled to stay above.

I was breathing fast and hard. Suddenly a hand grasped my shirt.

I looked up from the water to see a pale face in my view. I saw a stupid looking headplate and I realized it was the guy who had helped me from before. My eyes widened as I watched him stare at me with a stoic expression.

"Y-you?" I whispered in shock. I didn't think I would see him again.

"I have a grip of you. Calm down and try to focus on your chakra again so you can stand up," he said. I blushed and nodded my head as I shakily lifted my leg that was in the water out. I stretched it out and focused chakra. Slowly I placed my foot back on top of the water.

I breathed in and looked back at the guy. He nodded his head and I slowly stood up. He did the same as well, following my movements. I stuck my arms out for balance and finally I was standing again. I looked at the guy and he slowly released my shirt.

"Thank you," I murmured. I was embarrassed to have someone watch me fail like that, but I was happy to have help.

"I distracted you."

I wobbled a little and grabbed at the man's sleeve. "What?" I questioned. He looked back to the edge of the water. "You were running on the water and heard me, that's when you lost focus and fell," he stated. The leaves rustling was him? I shrugged.

"If you say so," I muttered. I looked down at the water and sighed. "I thought I could do it this time though…" I whispered. I released the man's sleeve and slowly walked back to land. I lost balance and a hand quickly latched onto my arm to help me stay up standing. I looked up and saw that the man was at my side again. "You're not going to give up that easily, are you?" he asked with no emotion whatsoever. I shrugged.

Kinda.

He sighed and looked around the body of water.

"You're going to walk around all this water. I'm going to help you until you can handle it on your own," he stated. My eyes widened. Why would he help me? I don't even know this guy.

"B-but why?" I asked. The man looked down at me as we started walking.

"Because I felt like it," he stated simply. I looked down and watched as he walked to my pace. His hand was gripping my arm. I frowned and looked at him curiously, "You aren't a serial killer, are you?" I asked. The man stared down at me, I thought he was going to get mad at me, but he nodded his head at me. "It's possible," he agreed as my eyes widened. "But I'm not," he added quickly. I don't know if that made me feel better or not.

"If you don't kill me then... thank you, whoever you are," I murmured as I looked up at him. His red eyes connected with mine and I held in my breath. He was odd looking to say the least. His hair was white and shaggy and he had fair skin. He had such light features that contrasted with the Uchiha, and even my clan.

"Tobirama."

I blinked my eyes.

"What?"

"You may address me as Tobirama now," he stated as he looked ahead. I pursed my lips and looked ahead as well. "You're pretty strange for helping me out, Tobirama," I laughed. I placed my hand on top of his. "We don't even know each other, but yet I feel like I can trust you a bit, yeah?" I asked looking up at him. The man continued looking ahead.

"It's naive to trust others in times like these."

What he said was true... and I was just asking if he was a serial killer. That was just another one of my faults... is misjudging people and trusting them too quickly.

I stopped walking and broke away from Tobirama. I sucked in a deep breath and held out my hand towards him. He felt a little different though.

"My name is Takeo. Nice to meet you," I said quickly. Tobirama paused for a moment, he stared at my hand and looked at me.

"This is where you shake my hand," I whispered. The white haired shinobi took my hand, and firmly shook it. He tugged me towards him and grabbed a hold of my arm again and continued walking. "We have no time to waste. You need to learn how to control your chakra," he said and I nodded my head. He had this big protective aura that made him less frightening. From upfront you could see he wasn't the type of person you would want to fight with, but when you get close enough you get a different feeling. I didn't mind being close to a stranger like this, it was nice. Being around Madara was like a journey; I never knew what to expect. When I thought I understood something he did a complete turn on me and I was thrown off the cycle. His mood was a difficult thing to get a grasp of and it was exhausting.

I stared down at the ripples in the water. I had a few questions I wanted to ask Tobirama, like... what is even doing in this area? Did he live near here?

I had a weird feeling in my stomach that was telling me not to ask. I was ignoring the thought of who Tobirama was and continued walking.

He was helping me and that's all that mattered to me at the moment.

We continued walking around the body of water until my feet grew sore and until I was able to walk alongside him without his grasp on my arm.


	9. Chapter 9

I smirked and bowed my head as Madara glared at me with his arms crossed. "Prince of all darkness, I've asked you here to show you something very spectacular!" I bellowed out. I raised my head and saw that Madara still had that glare on his face.

"If it isn't something great then I'm drowning you in the water," Madara threatened as he nodded his head towards the body of water behind me. I smiled and grabbed at Madara's hands, he made a face and tried to pull away, but I was stubborn and held on. "Are you a moron?" he asked as he fought back. I shook my head, and pulled him with me as I walked backwards.

"Just watch me for a second, please," I sighed. I looked over my shoulder and saw my feet touched the water. I puffed out my cheeks and did the same thing I did with Tobirama. I focused a little and soon I had chakra on my feet.

Tobirama practiced with me all day so that I wouldn't have to rely on someone to do something as easy as this. I immediately released Madara's hands and continued walking backwards, the gorilla surprisingly followed after me as well. I smiled and spun around so my back was facing him now. I stuck my arms out and raced around the water.

I felt so great, so on top of the world. Was I finally making progress?

I turned around to face Madara.

Would mom be proud of me?

Would my clan be?

At that moment I didn't care whether not I was making the cut to stay here with the Uchiha, even though I should be. I was just happy I made a real first step, not just some wobbles here and there. I was breathing heavy now, I was out of breath, but I felt like I could run for miles more. I couldn't get ahead of myself now though.

"What do you think? I'm running and before I could barely even walk," I breathed. Madara approached me slowly, he reached his hand out and I flinched. Was he gonna do those surprise punches? But he ruffled my hair… instead. He moved my hair away from my forehead and nodded his head.

"Good job."

I couldn't help but blush and swat his hand away from my hair. "You remind me of a dad congratulating his son, creep…" I whispered.

Madara made a face and immediately shoved his hand into his pocket. "You idiot, I was trying to be nice!" He argued. I shrugged, "shows you don't do it often since it came out so weird," I sighed. I shook my head and brushed past him. I was done frolicking on the water now. Tobirama was going to show up in an hour and Madara had to beat it.

"Don't walk past me!" Madara shouted.

"Don't you have a meeting to go to? I would hate to keep you waiting," I smiled. Madara blinked his eye and walked back to shore with me. "You're right, I can't be wasting my time on you," he sighed as he kicked the water from his shoes as we made to back to land. I rolled my eyes.

"We have a very important battle coming up. I need time to plan it," he muttered. My eyes widened, "a battle?" I questioned. Madara nodded his head, "not that you'll be going. You're still too weak to be of any use," he said with a mean grin.

"Will you… be okay?" I asked. My face heated up again.

Madara froze, I guess he wasn't expecting me to care either. He blinked his eyes and turned away from me. He was close enough to have his long hair whack me in the face. "Of course I will. Don't be stupid. I have to go now…" he said stiffly and stormed off. I stood there watching him until he disappeared into the woods. I wouldn't be lying if I said my heart beated a little fast at the moment.

I pressed my hand against my heart and counted the beats. My cheeks were still warm and I mentally cursed myself for feeling such a way. Why was I so flustered? Madara is mean, strict, unfashionable, basically a demon! So I shouldn't be worried about some stupid battle he's going to. He's so stubborn that he'll refuse to die even with a killing blow. I laughed at the thought. I imagined a zombie Madara coming back and still trying to train me and argue with me and call me an idiot.

"Takeo."

I squeaked and turned around quickly to see Tobirama. "Y-you scared me!" I complained. My heart was racing again, but for a whole different reason. Tobirama had his usual emotionless face and ignored my complaint. "We are starting early today," he said with his deep voice. I tilted my head and smirked. "Just couldn't wait to see me, huh?" I joked. Tobirama ignored me and dug into his pocket. I watched as he pulled out a thin piece of paper.

"Do you know your chakra nature?"

Was I supposed to?

I shook my head.

"I thought so. Here take this and focus your chakra into it." Tobirama said as he handed me the paper. "Is this a joke? This is a piece of paper…" I mumbled as I waved it in the air. Tobirama grabbed my wrist to stop me. "Cut it out and focus," he scolded. I rolled my eyes and took back my wrist. "Y-yeah, fine… let me just…" I trailed off as I stared at the paper between my fingers. Just focus chakra? I squinted my eyes and puffed out my cheeks as I focused on my fingertips.

The paper suddenly became soggy and crippled. My eyes widened and I quickly pressed my hand against my chest. "W-what the hell was that? What just happened?" I asked as I looked up at Tobirama. "The paper helps tell you what chakra nature you are. The paper showed that you are a water release user," he explained. I raised an eyebrow, "Seriously? That's so awesome," I gushed. A grin made it's way to my face as I imagined all the different things I could do with water.

I could boil my ramen or something.

"This just makes things easier for us," he stated with a slight a smile. I blinked my eyes and stared at him, I've never seen him smile. "How so?" I asked.

"I am a water release user as well."

I smiled. "I always knew you were cool," I snickered as I playfully shoved Tobirama. He didn't really move and was just stiff. I slowly took my hand back and ignored the dead stare he gave me. "Um, so… what kind of things are you gonna teach me? Are you going to teach me to control the seas and call upon the sea monster to kill all my enemies?" I asked with a grin. Tobirama raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms. "Don't get ahead of yourself," he sighed. I shrugged, "I'm just excited, okay? I never even considered this type of thing possible for me!" I defended. Tobirama nodded his head.

"You're still weak-"

"Gee thanks."

Tobirama glared and continued. "If you were to be caught up in a fight you would most likely lose, so you need to learn how to get away."

"Get away? Can't you just teach me a sick ass jutsu that I can use to crush my enemies?" I asked smashing my hands together. "Maybe drown them or something," I smirked. Tobirama ignored me and pressed his fingers together to form a cross. A chuckle escaped my lips, "Are you trying to cast demons out of my body or something?" I joked. Suddenly there was a puff of smoke and I was temporarily blinded. I coughed and waved the smoke away. "Hey, what the hell, Tobirama? Are you trying to choke me?" I asked. The smoke dispersed and I saw two Tobiramas. I tilted my head and walked over to them.

"Hey, what's going on?" I mumbled as I tugged on one of the Tobirama's clothes. "You're not fake… did you poison me with the smoke and make me delusional?" I asked looking up at the Tobirama. He stared down at me.

"No, this is a jutsu I created. It's the Shadow Clone Technique, a more advanced version of the Clone Technique" he stated as he waved my hand away from his clothes. "Clone Technique?" I questioned with a smile. The Tobiramas both groaned from my simple question as I continued smiling.

Was I supposed to already know of this so called Clone Technique?

-

"So it's Tiger, Boar, Dog, Ox?" I asked performing the signs. Tobirama shook his head and snapped his fingers at me so I could watch him. "I'll tell you once more, it's Tiger, Boar, Ox, Dog," he said while doing the signs. I nodded my head and followed the signs. "Then… I focus?" I mumbled as I looked up at him. Tobirama nodded solemnly.

I shut my eyes tight and focused. I felt my stomach burn up and soon I was warm all over. I felt a course of energy running through my veins. Finally, I heard a poof and I opened my eyes to look at my handywork. A clone of myself was standing pretty lame right next to me. I sighed and dropped my hands to my sides.

"It's getting better," Tobirama stated as he walked over to it to inspect. He pushed back the hair from my clone's shoulders. "It has ears now," he said as I giggled. "Is that a really big improvement? I've done this at least four times now and all my clones still look ugly," I sighed. I stayed quiet and turned to my clone.

"Maybe this is my true self…" I whispered horrified. Was I actually ugly?

"You're getting ahead of yourself now," Tobirama said as he shook his head. "It's getting late now and practicing the Clone Technique can have a toll on your body so let's end it here," he said. I smirked, "I'm okay. I can go for at least an hour more!" I declared as Tobirama stuck out his hand.

"Maybe for someone who was stronger. Give me your hand."

I slowly placed my hand on Tobirama's and he stared down at it. I was starting to feel self conscious. He began to point at red splotches on my palm. "My hands get red when they're sweaty…" I mumbled, finding a reason for my hands looking worn out. Tobirama flipped my hand over and inspected my knuckles. He used his thumb to point out the blisters. I stayed quiet.

"You may want to continue on, but your body is telling you different," he stated as he pulled out a small case. He took away his other hand from mine to open it, revealing a clear gel. he motioned for my hand and I stuck it out. He dug his fingers into the gel and smeared it gently onto my knuckles. It was cold and didn't burn at all. I felt a little embarrassed though.

He then took out bandages and wrapped my hand. "Got a whole hospital in your pockets, Tobirama?" I joked as I looked up at him. He motioned for my other hand and I gave it to him as he did the same treatment. "I only have what's necessary,"

When he was done he put away his things.

"I'll be gone for awhile. I won't be able to train you in the meantime," Tobirama said in his deep voice. I pursed my lips. Tobirama was going away too? Just like Madara? I looked away, trying my best not to put two and two together.

"Alright, be safe. I'll wait for you," I promised. Tobirama scoffed quietly.

"Don't say such embarrassing things," he scolded.

The walk back to the compound was quiet. Today was supposed to be a day full of training, but it didn't feel that long. It was probably a little past noon.

I approached the gates and saw that Morina was waiting for me. My cheeks flushed and I quickly rushed to her, she grabbed my hands and raised them. "Training hard today?" she asked touching my knuckles slightly. I shrugged and pulled away from her. "Not really," I sighed.

"Madara is off in some big important meeting. I'm all alone and bored," she pouted slightly. I raised an eyebrow at her, she never really talked about Madara before. I was unsure of how to respond so I just nodded my head. It felt uncomfortable to talk about him with her for some reason.

"Are you okay?" Morina asked suddenly. I snapped out of my thoughts and looked at her, "yeah, just a little tired…" I muttered. There was this sudden burning need to know what Morina and Madara's relationship was. Is this just some toot and boot kind of thing? Or… are they actually dating?

I puffed out my lips and ignored the urge to ask. "I have to go do something, I'll talk to you later," I mumbled as I took Morina's hand to held it before letting it go. She looked at me questionably and nodded her head.

"Okay, Takeo. I'll see you later," she said softly.

I avoided eye contact and slowly turned around and walked away.


	10. Chapter 10

"Are you paying attention?"

I held a scroll in my hand and looked over to Akio and shook my head. "Do you really expect me to remember all of this?" I asked with a frown.

"This poison can be very useful, Takeo. You might need it someday."

I rolled my eyes and placed the paper on the table. "I'm not the type who sits around all day and crushes pretty flowers into poison. It's kinda cruel, don't you think?" I asked. Akio set down the vial he was holding onto the table and looked at me with a steady gaze.

"What the hell did you just tell me?" He asked with a blank stare. I looked away awkwardly and scratched my arm. "I-I don't wanna crush up flowers because it makes me sad," I whispered.

"They're flowers."

"But-"

"Flowers."

Akio grabbed the scroll and placed it back in my hand and turned back to his vial. "Be grateful I'm taking time out of my day to teach you while Madara is off doing whatever he's doing along with that other guy," He whispered. I cringed a little inside and decided to play dumb.

"Don't know who the other guy is…" I whispered as I pretended to read the scroll.

"I'm not an idiot. I saw him."

"You need to get your eyes checked."

Akio raised an eyebrow. He looked to the door and saw that it was closed and locked. I pursed my lips, ready for whatever shit he was about to lay upon me.

"Are you really going to play that game? I know you've been meeting up with someone and staying out later than usual."

I rolled my eyes. "You're making me sound scandalous. Besides, Madara is telling me to stay out late," I shrugged.

"Yeah, so he can go sleep with that girl you've been friendly with lately," he replied with a sort of sharp tone in his voice.

I placed my hands on the table for balance. It made me feel weird to hear that. There was this sort of twisting and churning feeling in my stomach that made it feel like I was going to puke.

"It isn't like you to be mentioning things like this," I whispered. Akio seemed slightly out of character today. He was agitated and it worried me.

"Takeo, I suggest you learn all you can soon. Things have been getting tense here and I don't know how long we can keep up our stay here," Akio said, avoiding my previous statement. I took this as an answer though. Why wasn't I made aware of anything happening between us and the Uchiha though? What's happening?

"How… long has this been going on?" I asked.

Akio shrugged, "Since the beginning you could always feel the way the Uchiha felt towards us. You couldn't because you spent most of your time training outside of here… but…"

He trailed off, not knowing what else to say.

"It seems like Madara made the effort to keep us around, but lately it seems he's leaning more towards his people's side."

I felt my eyes water up.

"Izuna… he still makes the effort to train me, but I wonder how he must feel…"

I chuckled and brushed the hair out of my face. "Izuna was the one who wanted us in the first place. Of course he would be the last one to make any effort to keep us."

Akio nodded his head. "You know, no one is training my father and the other men. My father and everyone else just kinda go over previous lessons over and over by themselves and it's frustrating."

"The Uchiha look at us as if we are trash. You can just feel the judgment in their eyes and any minute I feel we're gonna be stabbed in the back," Akio continued. He paused for a moment, "Or they'll use us to extract chakra from our bodies for them to use. I already feel their dirty hands on me," he muttered quietly as he rubbed his arms.

"Madara promised that no one would do that to us. Besides that, why hasn't Mori said anything about the training? I'm surprised he's been quiet," I asked. Akio shook his head, "He still thinks we still have a chance to get something out of these people. This is so embarrassing, I can't believe we had a chance here," Akio hissed as he gripped the vial.

"Makes me wonder how Jiro is doing," he chuckled.

I stayed quiet.

"You can probably even ask the guy who's been training you."

I nodded my head, my entire being was telling me to lay down and cry.

"You do know he's a Senju, right? Tobirama Senju."

I noticed I was crushing the scroll in my hand. I unwrinkled it and placed it on the table.

"I was trying to avoid that idea. I guess I can't now" I sighed. Akio chuckled quietly, "I went to the place where you train and I saw you with him. Kinda weird how things like this happen."

I stared down at the scroll, refusing to give a response.

"Do you think he knows who you are? Or is he stupid and just decided to train some random girl?" Akio asked. I shrugged, "Maybe he fell in love with me and just couldn't stay away," I joked. As if that would ever happen. I looked like a monster when he found me sprawled out on the ground.

Akio laughed and wiped sweat at his brow. "I wonder if these two clans are in loop with what we are doing, or if they are just the two biggest fools we've ever come across."

"Why would they let us use them like this if they knew?" I asked.

"Because they feel sorry for us."

-

I left Akio to wither away in his room. The longer I stayed the more depressed he became. He was letting out all his emotions onto me and it felt uncomfortable.

I never seen him act like this.

He was always smiling, polite, never really showed any doubt in anything.

Maybe it was best we leave as soon as possible. Who cares what Mom would say about me, and Jiro would have certainly gotten something from the Senju. We wouldn't have left exactly empty handed.

It was surprising how calm I was about this. There was no violent wave of emotion inside me now, but the waves were slowly building up and up. I feel if I'm not careful I can send them crashing down and ruining everything. I could just imagine myself finally being pushed over the edge and bawling out my eyes just because I dropped some food on the floor or something stupid like that.

I was walking through the compound now, I never really spent a lot of time here, just like Akio said. I could feel the tense feeling he was talking about, but it wasn't any different to what I felt back home.

All those judging eyes on you, critiquing every move you make. Everyone, Mori and Akio were finally feeling what I felt back at home. They couldn't just pretend to understand what I felt, they knew it now.

It felt a little good.

I had no idea where I was going. I was just sort of walking around, taking in all this. I couldn't go see Tobirama because he is… away. Madara is busy as well, not that I would really want to see his face at the moment. I also didn't want to see Morina.

"Takeo."

I saw Izuna from the distance. He walked over to me and ignored all the gazes from the people he passed by.

I smiled awkwardly and waved. "Hey, how are you?" I asked slowly. Izuna isn't someone I saw very often, he spent a lot of his time with Akio inside the compound.

"I've been looking for you," he stated. I nodded my head, "You found me," I chuckled. Izuna smiled slightly and motioned for me to follow him.

"My brother has been busy with other things as of late. I'm taking it upon myself to train you until things clear up for him."

I wanted to roll my eyes but Izuna would see. Does he mean until Madara and Morina burnout or what? I don't see that happening very soon.

"I see the things you teach Akio and I don't know if I'm capable of doing that," I admitted. Izuna nodded, "I'm guessing you want physical training?" He asked with a smile. I shrugged, "I'm not exactly book smart…" I sighed.

"I'm not as strong as my brother, but I can teach you things."

"Oh, you're not some nerd who reads books?" I asked jokingly. Izuna blinked his eyes and paused for a moment. I started to sweat and wonder if he took me seriously.

"No."

"I-I was just joking…"


	11. Chapter 11

"This is impressive, Takeo. I would have never guessed that you would be this quick of a learner," Izuna smiled. I smirked and pretended to brush dirt off my shoulder. "It's no big deal. I'm just that great I guess," I sighed as I gazed over to my right where my perfect looking clone stood. She swung her arms lightly at her side as she smiled dumbly. It took me a little over two days to create a perfect clone. It was easier of course because I had prior training and I obviously didn't let Izuna know of that.

We were training in this big gym today that had this weird wood smell. I shouldn't be complaining though, we could've trained outside and I wouldn't have wanted that.

"Madara says you're a slow learner, but it doesn't seem like it," Izuna said. I shrugged my shoulders, unsure of what to say. I also didn't want to carry on any conversation about that dumb gorilla. Just hearing his name made me want to break something. I wonder though… if he saw this improvement if that would help keep me and everyone else here for a little while more. That of course would eventually lead to me having to go into battle with him if he did see us worthwhile. That was worrying, but there's no purpose on thinking of it now since chances are kind of slim at the moment.

"Are you okay?" Izuna asked. He moved his face in front of mine and grabbed my forearm to get my attention. I met his gaze and nodded slowly. "Yeah, I have a lot on my mind," I admitted. Izuna gave me a sorry half smile and leaned away from me. "Madara isn't going to be sending you away anytime soon. He's just…" he trailed off, looking away to find an excuse for Madara. I chuckled, "He's just tired of wasting his time on me," I finished. Izuna breathed in sharply. I think I hit the target.

"It's fine, I understand. But for Mori and my other men... I don't think it's acceptable that they are left on their own," I said, remembering the situation with them. There was this sort of strong feeling building up inside of me. Yeah, sure, I was facing the harsh reality that Madara didn't think I was worth the time to train anymore, but I didn't want the same happening to everyone else.

Even if I don't have the qualifications to be a leader, I can at least try and act like one.

Izuna nodded, his lips started to turn, seemingly satisfied with what he just heard. "I was hoping you would say something soon," he admitted. He motioned for me to follow him out the gym. I looked back to my clone and she followed after us.

"You knew?" I asked as we stepped out. Izuna nodded his head. "Yes, I've noticed it a long time ago," he said. I pursed my lips and imagined myself hitting Izuna over the head for letting something like this happen. "Why didn't you do anything?" I asked.

"I wanted to see what you would do. Think of it as a very easy test that you so happened to have passed."

"All it took to pass was me telling you to do something? What if I didn't?" I asked.

"You would have failed, Idiot."

I continued walking, ignoring the voice. I heard Izuna chuckle quietly and I kept my gaze down. I wanted to punch the voice's face in, but I would probably face a greater and scarier backlash from that.

"Are you suddenly mute now? Don't ignore me, Stupid," the voice said annoyed. I sucked in a deep breath and I acted without any thought. Or… well I didn't my clone did.

I listened for a hard smack, but there wasn't one.

I turned around and saw Madara had grabbed my clone's wrist, stopping her from hitting him. He glared at me and shoved the clone away, making her trip and fall backwards. There was a poof and she was gone.

"Did you just try to hit me?" he asked angrily. I crossed my arms, "No, she did," I muttered.

"She isn't wrong…" Izuna sighed.

"Are you here to argue with me or what?" I asked. Madara looked away for a second then focused back on me, he was getting annoyed. Was he expecting me to jump in his arms and cry tears of happiness to see his face again? Like I would do such a thing after realizing he was ditching me to go bone Morina. Addressing the fact that I was mad about this was making me even more angry. Why should I be angry about Madara and Morina?

"I was passing by and I saw two weird looking girls so I had to check it out," Madara said with a mean smirk. My eyes widened, "You are here to argue!" I yelled. The fact that he had to call me and my clone weird looking and not be impressed instead was annoying. Couldn't he at least pretend? It may not be a big deal to him, but it was for me.

Madara shrugged, "I have better things to do," he muttered and turned right around, walking off to whatever the hell he was going to. I wish I could drown him with some sick water jutsu, but Tobirama hadn't reached that stage with me. Maybe he would be proud to see what I've accomplished. I shouldn't let this jerk bum me out when a nice white haired… dude… would treat me nicer… I think?

"You don't mix together very well," Izuna chuckled once Madara was far away. I shot him an obvious look. "He hardly has anything nice to say to me… like at all," I said. Izuna smiled, "It takes awhile for him to-"

"He was born with a stick up his ass and he will always have it up his ass. I have… family members the same way," I muttered. Izuna pursed his lips and didn't say anything. I looked over to him, "I'm going back to the barracks. So I'll see you later," I sighed.

The walk to the barracks was quick. I didn't look up, I kept my sights down, ignoring everyone in my path.

I pushed the door to my room open and slammed it shut behind me. Resting against the door, I sank to my butt, thankful to finally be alone for the day. I was tired, hurt, and annoyed and it was all caused by one gorilla today.

I'm just waiting for him to come busting through and telling me to beat it.

I groaned at the thought of walking all the way back home, back to Mom and her judging wrinkled eyes. Pushing myself off the door, I crawled over to my bed and buried my head into the pillow. I just wanted to sleep for the rest of the day and momentarily forget about everything I felt in a short span of minutes.

I heard a knock at my door.

I ignored it, pretending to be asleep. Eventually the knocking stopped and the door creaked, giving sign that someone was opening it slowly. I stayed in place, keeping my face still in the pillow and slowly running out of breath.

The floorboard creaked as soft footsteps padded against it. Just hurry up and leave, I can't breath.

"The sun is barely even setting and you're sleeping already? Give me a break."

Oh, it's him.

"I don't know how the hell I'm supposed to keep my patience with you anymore, Isoroku."

You don't.

He took a deep breath and I felt pressure applied to my bed, making it sink. I held my breath, realizing that he was sitting on the bed right next to me now. Did this idiot really think I was sleeping?

"You did good, Takeo. Keep it up," he muttered.

His hand brushed against my arm and before I knew it he was gone.


	12. Chapter 12

I curled my toes as I stretched out my arms. A yawn had escaped my mouth and I opened my eyes to see that my room was still dark. The temperature was comfortable and I didn't need to pull up the blankets that had fallen to the ground. As I stretched my stomach became exposed. I peered down to see the birth defect was showing. Of course it would though.

Since Madara had taken off the seal used to cover it I have noticed a significant boost in power. I was incapable of doing literally nothing, but now that it is gone I'm able to at least learn new techniques or whatever you wanna call them. Now I didn't have an excuse for my incompetence, which was a little troubling.

Just as I was about to pull down my shirt to cover up my stomach a hand had reached out and grabbed my wrist. I immediately flinched and slowly looked up to see who had grabbed me. My body was paralyzed with fear and shock to see a tall figure looming over me. It felt like the boogeyman had come out of my childhood nightmares.

I opened my dry mouth to speak as the pair of eyes stared down at me.

"M-Mori… what're you doing here…" I whispered weakly. His hand tightened around me.

"Why is it gone?" he asked. His voice was steady, yet you could feel the terrifying anger that was ready to unleash on you. I tried to search his face for any type of emotion, but it was too dark. I wanted to cry, but I was too scared. What is he doing in my room anyways?

His grip tightened and I squeaked at the pain.

"Why is it gone?" he asked again.

"Madara… he took it off," I mumbled nervously as I tried to break away from him. I could feel Mori get angrier through his grip. I cried out and tried once more to break away but it was seemingly impossible.

"You let an Uchiha touch you? What made you think that was okay?" he questioned. His eyes were wide. They looked animalistic and as I stared into them I felt like I was falling into a deep abyss. I parted my lips to speak, but there was a knock at the door. I turned my attention to the door and looked back at Mori, expecting him to release me, but he didn't.

"Isoroku, you better not be sleeping still!" Madara's voice barked from behind the door. I was confused to hear his voice, but I felt relieved. I shook my wrist, and looked up at Mori. "We can't argue about this now," I whispered. Mori glared down at me.

"No, this is the perfect time," he growled.

Immediately the door was pushed open with force. I jumped and saw Madara standing there with his arms crossed. He looked angry, although I wasn't sure why.

He stepped into the room and I watched as his eyes went from the blankets on the floor, to my exposed stomach, and lastly, to Mori's hand wrapped tightly around my wrist. His eyes narrowed, seemingly displeased with what was happening.

"Care to explain what is happening?" Madara asked. Mori slammed down my wrist and turned to Madara. I quickly brought my hand to my chest, cradling it. "I want answers, Uchiha. Why did you take off Takeo's seal," he asked in a booming voice. Madara wasn't fazed by it though.

I reached out towards Mori to stop him, but he slapped away my hand. Madara eyed my hand for a moment and then looked back at Mori.

"The seal your clan wears are holding back a significant amount of chakra. There is no real point in wearing it so I thought the best choice was to remove it," Madara said coolly. "I didn't think it would be such a big deal since we are allies after all, there should be some type of mutual trust between us, no?" a smirk had begun to grow on Madara's face. I got up from my bed and pulled back Mori who had taken a step towards him.

"Stop… please," I whispered. Mori had tensed up from my touch and pulled away from me violently. He looked down at me with disgust in his eyes and then stormed out of the room. I was confused with everything happening, I just wanted to crawl back into bed and sleep, but I don't think it's possible now. What was Mori doing here anyways? Did he need to speak to me about something… or what?

"Are you okay?"

I snapped out of my thoughts and looked up at Madara, noticing he was closer to me now. I nodded my head and fell back onto my bed. "I don't know what happened," I mumbled weakly as I rubbed my eyes. Madara reached out for the wrist Mori was gripping and inspected it. You could see the print he had left.

"Put some ice on it and it should be better by tomorrow," Madara muttered as he released it. I nodded my head.

"What were you doing here?" I asked suddenly.

"I was coming over to wake you up for training since I had time today. Although, with that wrist you'll probably just cry the whole time," he sighed. I chuckled softly and nodded my head. "You're probably right," I agreed. Madara gave me a weird look, not expecting my reaction.

"But since you still have that extra time can't you train me in something else? Something not physical and more intellectual?" I asked. The Uchiha raised an eyebrow, surprised yet again.

"I didn't think you were smart enough," he said with a straight face. He wasn't trying to make a joke, he was serious and it hurt my feelings. My shoulders slumped and I dropped my head down.

"I may be a slow learner, but that doesn't mean I'm dumb…" I sighed. Madara chuckled slightly. "Alright, fine. Get dressed, idiot," he said and left the room.

I shifted uncomfortably. Madara noticed and glared at me.

-

"Stop fidgeting."

"I've never been in a man's home before," I whispered as I looked around. It was quite vacant. Not much decoration, just a bunch of boxes filled with scrolls and necessary furniture scattered around.

"Don't get the wrong idea," he snapped at me and I smiled bashfully. "Don't be shy with me, you've been in my room a couple times," I said playfully. Madara gave me a look of disgust, but then he smirked and gazed down at the piece of paper he had sitting at the table we were at.

"I would never enter a woman's chambers," he stated simply.

"But I am a woman…"

"Never held you to that class, so I'm good," he said. My eyes widened and I was about to yell at him, but I stopped. I should have seen that coming.

If he's being truthful with the whole "I've never entered a girl's room blablabla" then does that mean Morina has to come to his home? I looked around again, feeling sorry for the girl because she has to put up with Madara's terrible sense of home decor.

"Pay attention to the work."

"Oh right, sorry."

I gazed down at the paper and traced my finger over the battle formations. They showed positions for people to go in, which would be helpful if the Isoroku clan fought together in any circumstances. Staring at all these papers and reading this information is just making me realize more and more how far behind my clan is. Why didn't we ever work together, fight together? It was always a lone wolf type of thing.

"Have it memorized?" Madara asked. I nodded my head and scooted up the battle plans to him. I was handed a paintbrush, ink, and a blank piece of paper next and was ordered to draw out the formations I was just studying.

It was easy, nothing too complex. Once I was done and showed Madara and he nodded his head, pleased that I was able to remember. "You can keep this copy and show it to your men," he said. I sighed and leaned back from the table. Like they would ever listen to me, the only way I was going to get them to listen is if Mori yelled at them too. The thought of talking to him again made me anxious. I couldn't just ignore him though; we need to talk whether I wanted to or not.

Snapping broke me away from my thought. I looked up and Madara was leaning over the table, snapping his fingers at me. "Quit spacing out or I'll kick you out," he threatened. I nodded my head and bowed my head in apology. "Sorry, I'm still confused about this morning," I muttered. I raised my head and scratched the back of my neck as I forced a smile. "I'll just have to knock some sense into Mori for scaring me like that," I laughed as my lips twitched. Madara looked down at the bundles of papers on his lap. "Don't be stupid and do it alone. I'll be there too," he said as he continued shuffling, looking for something. I nodded my head, glad that he offered to come with me. It made me feel a little bit better, just a little.

"Go look in that bin over there. There should be a scroll with the number 3 on it."

I turned around to see two bins. I got up from the table and walked over to them. Which one did he want me to look in? I shrugged my shoulders and dug through the on the left. It was a messy bin; the scrolls looked more like trash because of how crumpled they were. I finally found the one with a 3 and opened it. It wasn't battle formations, just messy handwriting.

"Hey, not that bin, moron!"

I flinched and turned around to see Madara glaring at me from the table.

"What are these? Your diary entries?" I asked with a smile. I turned my back on him and read the scroll. I heard Madara moving from behind me. I scanned each line and realized the writing was familiar. This was just like the poems I get from the library, the same handwriting and style.

Did Morina give these to Madara?

The scroll was snatched out of my hands violently. I gasped and looked up to see Madara glaring down at me. It looked like he was ready to kick me out of his ugly home. "That's not fair that Morina gives you those," I huffed. I crossed my arms and waited for a response.

"Morina?" Madara questioned. He was looking at me as if I was stupid.

"Yeah, she writes those. I went to her home and she showed me her collection," I explained. "She had this really pretty one with a nice red ribbon," I said as I thought back to that time. I suddenly felt guilty for avoiding her. I shouldn't have let my feelings get weird and come between us.

"She showed you those?!" Madara exclaimed. His voice cracked and his cheeks were uncharacteristically becoming red. I raised an eyebrow and stood up. "Yeah, what's the deal here?" I asked. Madara quickly regained his composure and coughed awkwardly.

"None of your business," he muttered.

"Well now you have to tell me!" I argued as I knelt back down and dug through the bin. "Why does she give you all these. They're obviously drafts, she should donate them to the library like the others or let me have some," I whined. Madara immediately grabbed onto my hands to stop me from digging.

"Because I wrote those!" he admitted, his cheeks flushed once more. He wrote those poems? I remembered how the scrolls Morina had talked about love and cherishing the person you felt such feelings for. I quickly realized now Madara's feelings for her. It wasn't just some dumb booty call, or whatever I would call it, it was a real relationship with deep feelings. I suddenly felt very heavy in my chest, and I know why I felt uncomfortable talking about Madara with Morina.

I was unconsciously beginning the process of developing affection for this gorilla. Maybe it was those rare moments where he showed a little bit kindness towards me that really started it. I'm not sure, but I feel dumb now for letting this happen. I never got any type of attention from boys back home. I was mostly ignored. I guess when you finally get some type of notice it makes it easier for you fall for that person. I'm so pathetic, how could this happen to me? Nonetheless, I managed a slight smile on my heated face. There was nothing I could do about it now, I should just stop whining and finally focus on what I came here to do. I also have to see Morina again.

"You know, I think that's really sweet of you to write those for her," I said softly. Madara blinked his eyes; he stayed still for a moment and then slowly looked down at his hands, seeing that they were still holding onto mine. He released them with no urgency and stood up. I watched with focused eyes as he moved. This is so creepy; I shouldn't be watching him like this.

"I didn't ask for your input," he answered as he went back to the table. He shuffled through the papers he left there and sighed after a few minutes.

"I found the third scroll."


	13. Chapter 13

"You are a very stupid girl, you know that?!"

I focused my gaze on my feet. I was too afraid to look at Mori as he was shouting at me. We weren't at the compound, we managed to sneak away and now we're miles away. I was smart enough to not complain on the long walk through this damn forest.

"This type of behavior gets people killed!"

I lowered my head, wanting to just accept what he says and get back to the barracks, but I had the dying to urge to speak up. I gripped the fabric to my pants, nervous with what Mori would do once I spoke up, but I had to do it.

"Once the seal came off I felt stronger. Wouldn't it be wise for everyone to just take it off? It's not like we should be afraid," I said with my head still lowered. I heard Mori take in a sharp breath and I could feel my body go cold. He was about to blow- I can feel it. Mori only once yelled at me like this, when I was kid after dad had died. I think I was crying too much and he got annoyed, I can't remember.

"These Uchiha are not our friends, don't forget why we are here. This type of talk is exactly what got Tomio killed, don't forget that."

I immediately raised my head at the mention of dad's name. My lips quivered and I dropped my head again. Why did he have to bring him up? I felt like my own dad was being used against me. I sniffed and rubbed my nose. Despite my dad being a kind yet strong leader everyone refused to hear him out on any ideas he had on expanding our clan. Everyone is so dedicated to the idea of isolation that when he died everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Even Mori who would be considered a brother to my dad was glad to see a crazy idea like that vanish.

"Stop crying, we have to go meet up with Jiro," Mori muttered. I gave one final sniff and followed after him. We had left the compound today to see Jiro and share what we have found. I wasn't eager for this.

After ten more minutes of walking in silence we could finally see Jiro from a distance. We quickly closed the gap between us. I could see that Jiro's hair that he kept short had grown past his shoulders. He looked tired, but had put on more muscle, not a lot, but some.

Mori immediately wrapped his arms around my brother and brought him into a hug. A weird noise left Jiro as he was shoved into Mori's chest. "Good to see you doing alright."

"A-ah, same to you, Mori…" Jiro pulled away and looked at me. His eyes that would normally be cold and distant towards me had softened. He brushed past Mori and quickly came to me. His arms wrapped around me, bringing me close to him. He held onto me tightly and I could feel him beginning to shake.

"Jiro, are you okay?"

He nodded his head, arms still wrapped around me. "Being away from the clan and family changed me a little, sorry," he apologized softly as he released me. I looked away uncomfortably. What exactly has he been going through?

"Have you found anything worth bringing back?" Mori asked. Jiro nodded his head, turning to him. Of course he would.

"The Senju have vast knowledge on ninjutsu and medical ninjutsu. Although, they're a clan that specializes in wood release and I don't think we can use anything affiliated with that nature type." Jiro slipped off a bag he was wearing and dug into it, bringing out a small book. "I have some information on the jutsu's of that nature though, just in case. There is one member who is a water release user though and I think that may be more common for people in our clan."

I nodded my head.

Jiro must've gotten close to Tobirama.

"Good work, Jiro! I knew you wouldn't disappoint!" Mori cheered. My brother closed his book and tossed it back into his bag, he seemed uncomfortable with Mori's praise. He was acting to cheerful.

"Have you gotten anything?" Jiro asked.

I shrugged.

"Not much, Akio is learning to create poison and stuff like that though," I said. Jiro immediately perked up at the mention of Akio. He was the one who asked Akio to come and join me with the Uchiha. It must've been hard for him to do that. "How is he doing?" Jiro asked eagerly. Mori tilted his head confused.

"He's doing good. He's safe and sound," I assured. Jiro sighed in relief. I was surprised that he wasn't angry at my honest answer of not getting anything from the Uchiha.

"I didn't know you and my boy were friends," Mori said surprised. I rolled my eyes and watched as Jiro's face slowly fell. "They're not friends," I muttered, catching Mori's attention. Seriously, how could he not know about Jiro and Akio's relationship? How blind is he?

"Then what are you?" Mori continued.

I shook my head and Jiro quickly changed the subject.

"Have you gotten the message from Mother?"

I raised an eyebrow.

"What message?" I asked quickly. I looked up at Mori and he seemed to be just as confused as me. Jiro dug into his pocket and pulled out a piece of paper and handed it to me.

"She's sick. The doctors aren't sure how long she may last and asked that I return soon. You didn't get a message?" Jiro asked. I read the note over and over. This wasn't a message asking for a son to come home and give final goodbyes, it was a message telling Jiro to come home and take her place as leader. I could see the urgency in this note. Her writing is shaky, showing that she's starting to lose control of her limbs.

"When did you receive this message?" I asked.

"Almost a week ago," Jiro answered. I shook my head and handed the note to Mori who quickly snatched it out of my hands. "I never got anything from her."

Was she really going to keep me from seeing her? I don't want to become leader of a weak clan like ours. I have no interest; anyone should see that, so why would she prevent me from coming home to see her? Did she think I was gonna do a swoop on the clan and take the role I'm technically entitled to?

We may have never seen eye to eye, but how selfish of her. She was going to take away any sort of closure I had the possibility of having with her.

"I don't understand why we haven't gotten a message yet," Mori said dumbfounded. Jiro furrowed his eyebrows and looked at me.

"She's always wanted Jiro to become the leader of the Isoroku. She's probably afraid that if I were to come along with Jiro to say our final goodbyes then I would take the title instead," I explained. It hurt to say this, but it's very possible that this is her plan. I know it is.

"No, she wouldn't do that," Jiro argued. I shook my head.

"Be realistic here and think for a moment. Doesn't this seem like something she would do, be honest," I said. Jiro turned his back to me and lowered his head.

"The message must've gotten lost. She wouldn't do that," Jiro insisted.

"I'm planning on sneaking off in a week. I'll leave right when the sun sets. I want you to meet here in this exact spot and we'll go together," Jiro said. I smiled and reached over to turn him around. "You're going to make her unhappy," I chuckled. Jiro shook his head and gave me a scornful look.

"Meet me here in a week, Takeo. I'll march through that Uchiha hell and drag you out if I have to," he said and quickly stalked off. I couldn't help but chuckle as he quickly vanished. Mori stayed silent for a moment then sighed.

"It is something I can see her doing unfortunately," he admitted. I stayed quiet and turned around, heading back to the compound.

-

I lightly knocked on the door.

After a few moments, Morina had opened the door, surprised to see me, but a smile was immediately on her face. "Takeo, what are you doing here?" she asked softly. I bit my lip, trying to stop myself from crying. I just hugged her. That's all I could do and she didn't seem to mind since she hugged me right back.

She led me inside and we sat down on the couch. She motioned for me to lay my head on her lap and I did. She ran her fingers through my hair as she listened to my pitiful babbling.

"I-I'm sorry I've been avoiding you! I was going through a weird confusing time, but I'm over it for the most part," I cried and she simply hummed in response. Without going into much detail I had cried to her about how my mother didn't treat me the way a mother should and she just dabbed at the tears as the slipped down my cheeks. I cried about a lot of things and after I was done and tired I stayed there as she continued to brush her fingers through my hair. It was relaxing and I could feel myself falling asleep.

Why is she like this? What possessed her to act like a saint?

How did she even fall for Madara? Did he write her love notes until she finally accepted him?

"You're not real," I mumbled. Morina laughed and tucked some my hair that had fallen in front of my face behind my ear. "Why would you say that?" She questioned. I shrugged.

"You're so nice it's unreal. How'd you end up in a dump like this anyways?" I asked. My eyes were feeling heavy.

"Don't say that, Takeo! The Uchiha are very nice people," she scolded. "But, my clan was attacked and I managed to get away. Madara found me and brought me here." Her clan was attacked? I got up from her lap and made eye contact with Morina. "I'm sorry to hear that happened to you," I whispered. But she shook her head at me and smiled. It made my stomach churn to see her smile at something tragic. Why is she happy? Or is she putting a brave front?

"They were terrible people. I couldn't stand to be with them any longer."

Terrible?

"W-what about your family? You must miss them, right?" I asked. It didn't feel right to hear Morina say she was glad her family was gone. It didn't match her personality, how is she so sweet and kind but is glad about something like this? I searched her face for a different answer but I couldn't find anything. Her lips were pulled into a smile and her eyes were relaxed, looking as if she is in a deep daze.

"I couldn't stand them, Takeo. They could do nothing but feel sorry for themselves. In a world like this those who feel that way don't deserve a place."

I felt my lips tremble as I stared at her.

She couldn't stand… those who felt sorry for themselves? What have I been doing since I got here? Complain about my situation and cry, that's what I have been doing. I wanted to tear off the mask Morina was wearing and find someone else. This couldn't be her… could it? Morina noticed my change in mood. She reached over to grab my hands and brought them to her lap where she cradled them. Her thumbs brushed over my knuckles and she continued to smile gently.

"Your eyes are so wide and curious, Takeo. You remind me of a child that I need to look over and make sure is safe," she giggled. I stayed silent and watched as she continued to hold my hands. "You're so clumsy and naive. If you continue to be this way then you won't have a place in this world," she whispered. Her grip on my hands tightened and I wanted to pull away, but I was too afraid to. I also didn't want to leave despite it all.

Morina looked up at me.

"You'll end up just like my family if you don't stop now."

-

"You're acting weirder than usual," Madara grunted. I ignored his comment and concentrated on the fish that swam beside my feet. We were at a stream near the training grounds. I was ordered to catch a fish and here I am… trying to catch one even though I would really rather not.

"Just grab one, stop wasting time!" Madara snapped. I shut my eyes tight and screamed as I plunged my hands into the water. I felt a fish swim past them and I immediately followed after it and grabbed it. I threw my hands up with the fish in it as if it was some trophy.

"I did it!" I cheered.

I opened my eyes and Madara had rolled his. I frowned and lowered my hands.

"You're so childish. How is anyone supposed to take you seriously?" he questioned with a harsh tone. I felt my cheeks heat up and I shrugged at him. I suddenly felt a lot smaller in his gaze and I wanted to immediately go back to the barracks and sleep. I didn't even want to come here with him. He caught me leaving Morina's house and after an unnecessary yelling about how I shouldn't be there he dragged me here.

"Are you blushing?"

I looked back at Madara whose face was twisted in look of distaste. I scowled at him and shook my head. "I'm not! Just take the stupid fish!" I yelled as I shoved the poor thing into Madara's hands. I've never seen the man express any sort of shock before, but when his hands touched the cold wiggling fish his whole face dropped. His shoulders were raised high and his body became still as he held the fish.

"I-I wanted you to kill it, not give it to me!" Madara shouted as he gave me back the fish. He quickly wiped his hands on his pants and did a quick shiver. I gulped and tried to fight back on the thought of calling Madara cute for doing that. "Why would I kill this poor thing?" I asked as I brought the fish up to his eye level. The man avoided eye contact with the thing and looked off into a different direction. "So you can have something to practice on," he answered. Madara's face was scrunched up. I didn't know a fish could have this type of effect on him.

"Practice?" I asked.

Madara looked back at me with hesitancy.

"For medical ninjutsu, moron."

I gawked at him. "I didn't know you could do that!" I said excitedly. I looked down at the fish with a smile on my face then it dawned on me that I had to kill the fish. I dropped the smile and sighed. That was something too hard for me to do, even if it is just some mindless fish. "Do I have to kill it?" There was some hope in me that Madara would shake his head at my cowardly behavior and say no in the end.

"What use will you be to me if you can't even off a fish?"

I looked up at Madara. There was no sort of mean playfulness to his statement. He also wasn't giving me any sort of mean look either. It was a straight look. There was no type of emotion available on his face. It made me feel more worried and scared than when he's glaring at me.

I held the wiggling fish in one hand and reached into my pouch to bring out a kunai. I sighed and pressed the sharp tip against the fish. I didn't want to do this.

Suddenly Madara's hand was placed on top of mine.

"Make it quick and don't think about it."

His hand pressed against mine and the pressure drove the kunai into the fish. Immediately all movement was ceased.


	14. Chapter 14

"Considering the fact that you haven't attempted this before… I would say you're doing a decent job."

I gazed over to Izuna who was watching intently. Him being here in this room was making me feel better. I looked over to Madara who was glaring down at the fish as it lay on a cold tray.

"You are a fast learner, Takeo. I'm impressed," he continued. My face lifted at the comment and I took my hands away from the fish and clasped them in joy. "Thank you! That means so much to hear!" I gushed out happily. Hearing a compliment and not some insult or scolding was a real lifter for me. Who knew such a simple thing like that from Izuna would cheer me up?

"Oi, the fish isn't gonna heal itself, Isoroku," Madara barked. He twisted in disgust and tore his eyes away from the fish to look at me. I sighed and placed my hands back over the fish. I concentrated on my chakra and a light green glow covered them. "After you heal that fish we're gonna cook it," Madara huffed. We were currently in his home, practicing medical ninjutsu. He didn't have a vast knowledge on the subject, but just enough to get by.

"Those fish eyes are starting to creep me out," he admitted. I looked up from the fish and saw that Madara's face had cutely curled into a look of repulse. His lips were pulled thin and his eyebrows were pointed down as he continued to give a harsh glare at the poor creature. His cheeks were slightly puffed out, giving me the final blow to my weak heart. His eyes were raised and met with mine and I quickly looked back down as my cheeks, without permission, burned.

"Isoroku."

My heart leaped and I looked back at Madara. His eyes were fixated on me and I grew self-conscious. Did my hair look okay? Was there anything embarrassing on my face? I realized I was holding my breath when I released it as Madara shot an unexpected smirk at me. Usually I would have hated to see such a thing, but that's all I wanted to see at the moment. He brought up his index finger and I followed it like what a stupid animal would do when looking at food. He created circles in the air and then pointed directly at the fish. I looked back down then back up at him and the smirk was gone. A scowl had replaced it.

"If you were on an actual battle field then the person you were healing would have died," he stated quietly. I blinked my eyes and stared down at the fish. My hands had lost the green glow. I pursed my lips and focused again.

"Forget it, Isoroku. Go home and we'll cook the fish for dinner," Madara sighed.

"I don't want fish," Izuna muttered and Madara scoffed. "Then I'll just eat it with Mor-"

The fish started flopping on the tray and I jumped back in shock and threw my hands up. "I did it!" I cheered as Izuna quickly stepped up to me. He placed his arm around me and leaned in. "Good job!" he grinned at me and I quickly hugged him.

"H-hey!" Madara shouted as he quickly stomped over to us and pushed us apart. "Go throw that thing on a pan," the angry older brother ordered as he jabbed a thumb towards the fish. I shook my head and looked over to Izuna who had quickly left the room. He came back carrying a large bowl filled with water. He set it down on the tray and I grabbed the flopping fish and slipped it into the bowl.

"Teamwork!" I yelled as I held out my hand for Izuna to clap. He didn't see it and left me hanging. I heard a chuckle from Madara and I lowered my hand.

"We're eating that fish!" Madara insisted. I crossed my arms and smiled in defiance. "Then grab it," I said as I nodded towards the fish. Madara blinked his eyes and looked down at the bowl. His hands twitched and he shook his head quickly. "I'm not getting my hands wet for my dinner," he huffed.

"Anyways, you need to get out because I'm expecting company."

My smile dropped and I turned to look at Izuna who rolled his eyes and was already gathering his things. I turned to the window and finally saw how dark it was now. It would make sense for me to back to the barracks, but I didn't want to go. Madara cleared his throat and I looked back at him.

"What?" I asked softly.

"What are you waiting for?" He asked with a raised eyebrow. I looked over to the fish and sighed. "Nothing," I whispered as I shook my head. I picked up the bowl and looked at Madara one final time before following Izuna out the door.

"Do you need help carrying that?" Izuna asked. I shook my head and smiled at him forcefully, "No, I've gotten a little stronger since I've gotten here, so I can handle it!" Being kicked out by Madara was depressing me. He said he was expecting company, so obviously Morina was going to stop by. I shouldn't be so upset, but I couldn't help it.

Despite talking with Morina earlier and learning… some new things about her I still wanted to be with her. But I felt conflicted when thinking about her and Madara being together. Am I jealous of him being with her or her being with him? I could feel the fish thrash within the bowl, snapping me out of my thoughts. I sighed, realizing that I couldn't bring the little guy back to my room with me.

"I'll be leaving you here, Izuna. Thank you for your help earlier," I said turning to him. The Uchiha smiled and shook his head. "I didn't do much it was all Madara."

I rolled my eyes at the mention of him.

"It is!" Izuna insisted with a chuckle. He placed a hand on his hip and gave me a hint of sassiness. "You may not get along, but he does find you interesting-" my eyes widened at the simple sentence. Interesting is good, right? If so what did he find interesting about me?

"Are you okay, Takeo? Your face is kinda red…" Izuna mumbled as he pressed his hand against my forehead. I laughed and shook my head. "I'm just tired, I should hurry up and go to bed." I gave a slight bow and quickly turned my back to Izuna.

"Goodnight!" I yelled out as I quickly walked away.

"A-ah, goodnight, Takeo!"

-

I probably should have brought a jacket.

I bent down and tilted the bowl, watching as the fish plopped into the stream where I had gotten him earlier. He went with the current and swam away. "You had quite the journey, buddy. Sorry about earlier…" I apologized. The only light I had was the moon, making it hard to see. I groaned as the wind whipped against me and stood up slowly. I stretched out my arms, making my joints crack and gave a big yawn.

"Time to go to bed," I whispered to myself and turned around.

"Takeo."

I squealed at the sound of my name and immediately curled up defensively.

I searched for the voice and found it quickly. I rubbed my eyes in disbelief.

"What're you doing here so late, Tobirama?"

The man was covered by the shadows in the most dramatic way possible, but once I had said his name he stepped into the moonlight. I felt a smile creep onto my face as I walked over to him, closing the gap.

"I was going to leave this at the training ground," Tobirama said with his deep voice as he held out his hand that held a box. I touched the box, wondering what was inside it and why Tobirama would want to leave it at the training ground.

"What's inside it?" I asked.

Tobirama opened the box, revealing bandage wrappings and a vile of a clear substance. I tilted my head, confused. "I haven't been here to train you and assuming you haven't been slacking on your training I wanted to at least give you this."

I pressed my hands against my chest and giggled in joy. Seeing a kind act like this was going to keep me up at night, and have me rolling in my bed as a smile is plastered on my face.

"You have no self control and I'm worried you will only end up hurting yourself, so use these."

I pursed my lips and took the box away from Tobirama. He could have said it in a nicer way at least. "This is really thoughtful, Tobirama. Thank you," The man brought his hand to his hair and scratched it with a sudden urge. He turned his cheek to me and stared off into the distance.

"Don't think much of it," he muttered.

I giggled once more and instinctively reached out to grab the man's hand. He flinched at my touch, but didn't pull away. I swung his hand lightly and nodded my head. "Okay, I won't think much of it."

Wait, why did I do that?

My lips curled into a weird and awkward grin and I released his hand quickly. I wiped the sweat off my palm on my pants and laughed nervously. "I'll make sure to use these… well. Um, but why bring them so late at night?"

"Why are you here so late at night?" Tobirama asked, ignoring my question as he stared at me sternly. I looked back towards the stream and pointed at the fish bowl I had left there. "Uh, I killed a fish then brought him back to life. I came back to release him," I stated simply.

"You… brought him back?"

I quickly turned back to Tobirama and nodded my head excitedly. I slapped my hands together and rubbed them. "You bet your sweet ass! Your girl just learned some basic medical ninjutsu!"

"Just imagine teaming that up with whatever sick water jutsu you teach me! I'll be kinda cool," I said smugly. Tobirama's mouth was gaped slightly. Maybe he was surprised by how strong I have become. I wouldn't blame him.

Suddenly his hand reached out for my cheek and pulled on it harshly. I yelped in pain and grabbed onto his hands. "Don't be immature and use such language!" he scolded me. I yelled in pain as Tobirama continued to pinch my cheeks. "Shinobi should be more serious, even if they aren't as strong as others!"

"F-fine! Lemme go, jerk!" I whined. Tobirama had finally released my cheek and I rubbed it sorely. "You're no fun," I mumbled and the man shook his head as he released an exasperated sigh. "I don't know what I'm going to do with you."


	15. Chapter 15

"Want to go somewhere with me, Lady Takeo?"

The young girl stared up at Mori with wide, bright eyes and nodded her head excitedly as she gladly took his large hand. The man smiled and pressed a finger against his lips. "It'll be our secret, okay?" He asked.

"I won't tell!" She promised and she was led out of her room. They walked down the hallways of her home and suddenly Mori stopped. A room ahead was where Tomio was doing paperwork. The man turned to Takeo, still smiling. "Go meet me outside at the gates. I need to speak with your father."

Takeo stuck out her thumb and winked childishly. "Got it!" she whispered and she dashed past the room her father was in, not hearing him call for her to join him. The seven-year ran through her home and finally approached the exit. She held her hands out, ready to push open the doors when they suddenly swung open, revealing her mother.

"T-Takeo! Where do you think you're going?"

The girl stopped and reached for her mother's hands. "I'm going to have fun today!" She grinned as she swung each other's hands. Her mother sighed and slipped one hand out of Takeo's grasp to ruffle the little girl's hair. "Be careful then," she smiled. Takeo nodded her head and went past her mother, finally making it to the outside.

The sun beamed down the child as she moved past others in her clan. They all shouted greetings at her as she ran by, but she didn't bother with them. Finally, the gate was coming into view. Usually there were guards surrounding that area, but weirdly there wasn't even one today. No one was really allowed to leave. You needed permission and a good reason to want to go past the gates. Mori was obviously going to take her outside of here; it would be the first time she ever left the compound.

She stopped at one of the posts set up there and caught her breath.

"Took you long enough."

Huh?

Takeo looked to her right and saw Mori leaning against the gate. "How'd you get here so fast?" She asked running up to him. The man chuckled and pressed his hand against her back to guide her to the outside. "Never mind that. Let's go, yeah?"

Takeo smiled widely and nodded.

The pair had walked for what seemed like forever. Takeo was too captured by everything around her. The trees were so tall, and the air was clean and strong. How was this even possible? Everything back home was so small and dull. If only she was allowed to go past the gates everyday and explore the area. Everyone is so scared to leave though and rules were enforced to keep everyone locked in, despite what her father felt. Everyone is so against his ideas of expanding that he had no other choice, but to make the people happy and do what they asked of him. He still put his ideas out there, but it made people anxious, even his wife and Mori grew worrisome of his talks.

"Mori?"

Takeo turned around, looking the tall man, hoping he was nearby, but he wasn't. Fear began to grow in her little chest and she hugged her arms. "Mori!" she shouted, desperate for a reply. Maybe the people back home had the right idea.

How long was he gone? Did she walk away from him?

"Don't leave me alone!" She cried out. She dropped down to the ground and covered her eyes, feeling so small. No longer was she amazed by the great big trees. All they did was scare and terrify her. How easy it was for her to suddenly change mood.

"Stop being a baby."

Takeo sniffed loudly and looked up. A boy stood in front of her, staring at the girl with annoyance in his dark eyes. Takeo stood up slowly and rubbed her eyes. "I was with someone, but I lost them. I'm scared," she whispered. The boy raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms. "Maybe they ditched you," he said. Takeo shook her head, "No, he wouldn't do that to me!" She insisted with her tiny voice. "I didn't do anything wrong. So, why would he leave me?" She questioned.

"You seem to cry easily, so maybe he thought you were annoying" the boy sneered as he jabbed a finger into the girl's forehead. Takeo winced and backed away from him. "T-that hurts," she mumbled as she rubbed her forehead. "Who're you anyways?" She asked glaring at the boy. He blinked his eyes and scratched his neck.

"My name is-"

Suddenly the leaves from the trees bristled. The boy froze and turned to see who was moving them. Then multiple rocks came flying from the trees. The boy didn't have enough time to move and dodge them and had dived down to the floor and covered his head. Who was attacking them? Did he walk straight into a trap?

Takeo, who had no idea what was happening, just stood there. A single stone had struck her on the corner of her forehead. It went black for Takeo as her small frame was sent back from the force. The hail of rocks came to an abrupt stop the minute Takeo had hit the floor. The boy raised his head and peered up into the trees, and then he turned to look for the girl and saw her lying on the ground. He rushed over to her and knelt besides Takeo, moving her hair out of her face.

Blood had smeared her face and her eyes were partially open. "Hey, are you alive?" he asked with a sense of urgency. This girl was obviously no ninja, she didn't dress in clothes that would give any sign to her being one, and she didn't try to dodge the attack. Should he take her to some help? No, he shouldn't worry about her. Even if she is just a small child, he should still worry about himself.

"Don't get mixed up in this, kid."

The boy quickly turned to face the front and came face to a tall man. His face held no emotion as he stared down at the boy. He seemed too relax for what just happened. "There's no reason to fight, so you can leave," he sighed and the boy came slowly to his feet. Looking back at the girl, the kid took off. Like the man had said, there's no reason to get caught up in something like this. He was just passing through after all.

Once the boy had left Mori finally looked at Takeo. He walked over to her and nudged her shoulder with his foot. She made no movement. Mori groaned and scratched his neck, "I thought it would be fun to see how you would react, but you just stood there. You're supposed to be the leader of the Isoroku someday and you just stand there when attacked?" He asked loudly.

He scoffed and crossed his arms. "Tomio certainly lost his luck with you. I wonder if Jiro will be any different?" He turned his back on the girl and stalked off. He would pretend to not know what happened to the young Lady Takeo and would be the leader of a search party. When Mori would finally allow for the others to stumble upon Takeo she would have hopefully bled out from her wound. She's so tiny and weak; it was a definite thing to occur.

"See yeah," Mori called out as he walked away.

-

"When are you going to stop crying, Takeo?"

I turned to Akio and wiped away my snot. He shot me a sympathetic look and handed me a tissue. I took it and blew my nose into it.

"What's got her this time?" I heard Mori sigh. He was leaning against the wall in my room as the other men had their ear against my closed door. They didn't think we knew they were there, but we did. We can hear them whisper amongst themselves. They were so out of loop on everything and were diving for any little information they could get their hands on.

Akio turned around to look at the door and sighed.

"We were walking together in early in the morning and saw Madara… being affectionate with his partner," Akio whispered so the others wouldn't hear. Mori glared and balled his hands up into fists.

"What did he say?"

"They were walking in the morning and saw Madara being a receptionist… I think."

I grimaced.

"That's a whole bunch of bullshit!" Mori roared as he slammed his fists against the wall. The room shook and the men listening had screamed out and you could hear them scramble away in fear. I would follow after him if I could.

"Father!" Akio shouted. He stood in front of me protectively when Mori pushed himself off the wall and took a giant step towards me. Mori glared down at his precious son and breathed through his nose loudly. "Move, boy. This girl needs a good shaking for crying over this crap!" Akio flinched and looked back at me shakily before turning back to his father. "We have a duty to protect the head of our clan and the upcoming one. You can't lay a hand on her!" Akio yelled. I looked up in shock to hear me being called the upcoming head. Did people really see me as one?

"Screw that! She's no leader of mine. She took her seal off and even suggested that we all do the same!" He roared out. Akio stayed silent for a moment and shook his head. "It doesn't change the fact that we still have to protect her. Whether you like it or not she'll soon take the place of her mother-"

"If she's even allowed to go back. A note was sent to Jiro to go back and none was given to us. It's obvious that he is a preferred choice to lead the clan and I wouldn't argue with that!"

"J-Jiro?" Akio asked in shock.

"No one wants a weakling like her. We have made no progress here and Jiro clearly has so we should just go back home. Leave her here since she trusts and adores the Uchiha so much," Mori sneered as he crossed his arms. I kept my head down and let all the words soak in. It hurt so much to hear this. It felt like the whole pressure from the world just fell on me. My chest was in pain and I was starting to breath fast.

"Just like her father, a ninja with no spine. Because of him we're in this situation. If he had kept his mouth closed before he died we wouldn't be here."

I raised my head and stood up. Mori gave a low chuckle and Akio turned to me. The boy shook his head at me and placed his hands on my shoulders. "Don't do anything rash, Takeo," he whispered, but I shook my head and pushed him away.

"I can't stand hearing you talk badly about my dad. You were his friend and yet all you have done since he died is trash him!" I yelled at Mori. The man smirked and held out his arms, as if welcoming me to attack him. "That's expected for a weak leader. He had dreams and ideas that aren't made for us. I cherished him as a friend, but looked down upon him as a head of our clan."

Akio looked between us back and forth, unsure of what to do.

"If you're looking for a fight then why don't we take this outside? Want to show me the strength you've gained from taking off your seal?" Mori asked with a smirk as he exited the room. I followed after him, hot on his tail. All I could see was red. I wanted to shove Mori's head into the dirt and make him bleed. We walked past the other men who had pressed themselves against the wall to avoid us. Akio followed closely behind, shouting at us to stop.

"Is she really going to do this?"

"No way can she go against Mori."

"Is he even allowed to fight Lady Takeo?"

I slipped out a kunai knife and hid it up my sleeve.

Be quick and don't think about it. That's what Madara said, right?

The sunshine hit me as we exited the barracks. Everyone followed us out. Mori stopped walking and turned to face me. I had expected to lose my nerves, but all I could feel was more rage as Mori continued to smirk at me. "What're you waiting for, Lady Takeo," the man asked. I sucked in a deep breath and got into an offensive stance.

"Oh, look at that! Actually learned something?"

I charged at him, screaming at the top of my lungs as I imagined beating Mori to a pulp. I brought my fist back, concentrating chakra to my fist and shot it towards Mori's side. He expected my attack and caught my fist as it was launched forward. I huffed as he tightened his grip on it. "That was unexpected. You can use your chakra now?" he asked. I glared up at him and slipped the kunai down my sleeve. I slammed down on his hand and Mori shouted in pain. Blood shot out from his hand and he released his grip on me.

I jumped back from him and I couldn't help but smirk as the man grabbed his hand in pain. He looked up at me in shock and had lost his cocky attitude. "You really want to play this game?" He asked slowly. I held up my kunai and nodded my head.

"I know I'm not strong enough to defeat you," I murmured. I had to be honest with myself and accept the fact that I wasn't going to pull an amazing victory here. "But I can at least leave you with a few scars!" I shouted.

Everyone surrounding us began murmuring amongst each other. They didn't expect this out of me. I didn't either.

"Please, stop this!" Akio shouted, but Mori held a hand out to silence him. "Let Takeo have her moment here. I'll put her back in her place when I feel it is time." Mori released a low chuckle and suddenly charged towards me. The sight of him running at me caught me off guard, but when he got close enough to land a punch I dodged it. His moves came at me fast. He threw his leg up to kick me and I ducked. He swiped at me and I moved away from his hands. He was fast, but Madara was faster when we sparred. Mori relied on nothing, but his strength. His attacks were predictable, even for me.

I was done with dodging and countered a punch from him. I jabbed his forearm with my kunai and he jumped back as he covered his wound. "You brat!" He yelled in anger. I wiped the kunai on my pants to clean it and sucked in a deep breath.

"Takeo!"

My eyes widened and I lost focus at the sound of Morina's voice. I turned my head to see where she was and the breath was knocked out of me. I felt light on me feet and I was slammed against a tree. I choked on my spit and grabbed at my chest; desperate for the air I had lost. My eyes were wild and I couldn't focus on anything, but I managed to land them on Morina who was running towards me. I shook my head and held out my hand to stop her from coming to me.

"D-don't!" I shouted as drool ran past my lips. She kept coming though and before she could reach me she was pushed aside by Mori and the force sent her tumbling. I cried out for her and moved to go to her, but I was shoved back against the tree.

"Not so tough, are you?" Mori asked through his teeth. I glared up at him and I raised the kunai to stab him again, but he knocked it away.

"What a pathetic try. Reminds me of your f-"

He stopped suddenly and I noticed the sharp blade at his throat. I followed it up to the person holding it and saw Madara. His eyes were red.

I never saw that before.

"Madara…" I murmured, but he ignored me.

"Are you okay?" He asked, but he wasn't asking me. His eyes were casted sideways to where Morina was. She raised herself up from the ground shakily and nodded her head. "Y-yes, I am."

His eyes shot back down to Mori. "You wouldn't have a second more to think if she said no." Mori chuckled and looked at me. His eyes dug into mine, making me uncomfortable. I had reverted back into my normal way of thinking and lost all bravery, or just sheer stupidity I had earlier.

"So… that's Madara's partner?" Mori asked with a smirk. Madara's blade dug deeper into Mori's neck. "Watch what you say around me," the Uchiha growled. Mori raised his hands in defeat and the blade was removed. "I know when I'm done. I think I proved my point towards Lady Takeo as well."

Madara finally looked at me for the first time. His eyes were still red. Then he raised his blade at Mori. "There's no reason to fight you. So you may leave."

Mori raised an eyebrow and threw his head back to let out a hearty laugh. "And you're going to keep her?" he asked pointing at me. I looked down.

"She can sure get in a few stabs, but that won't do anything to help out your battle against the Senju. When she goes against her brother she's dead."

"Like you'll be any different. You have a lot of strength, but in the end that's not gonna do anything for you when you come against someone who is smarter than you," I spat. Madara turned to me and gave me a smug look. "I'm tired of hearing you speak ill things about my dad, so go back to the clan!" I ordered.

"Everyone there is nothing but a bunch of conservative old fools, including the current head. When I'm done with everything here I'm going back and turning it into the way it should be. We are not going to be isolated any longer!" I promised. Mori's eyes narrowed as he watched me shout. "Pretty bold words for a lazy girl," he muttered.

He shrugged his shoulders and turned his back to me. "Fine, if you really want to be buddy buddy with these Uchiha then go ahead. Try and go against the Senju with your strength. If you do manage to live through it and try to come back home I'll make sure you won't get passed the gates."

I sucked in a deep breath and turned to my men who were watching in silence. "Whoever is on the same page as Mori may leave with him. If you chose to stay then you are required to take off the seal." Akio stared down at his shoes. There was a certain loyalty he couldn't break with his father. I understood if he left with Mori. He tugged down the collar to his shirt, revealing the seal. He looked at me and gave me a simple smile as he tore it off.

"I promised I would stay with you for this. I won't leave until it's over."

Mori turned to look at his son in shock. "You're really going to do this?" he asked in disbelief. Akio nodded his head and smiled at his father as his eyes watered up and his cheeks grew red. "I'm sorry, but I have a duty to fulfill. Forgive me," he bowed his head and held the seal tightly in his hands. Was he just keeping his promise to Jiro or was there another reason? Mori quickly turned away from his son and massaged his temples. "Fine, I have no reason to stay here," he muttered and stalked off. I watched as he slowly disappeared in the distance. I turned to rest of my men, watching as they talked amongst each other. One of them stepped away from the group, seemingly a spokesperson for them.

"We'll stand with you too, Lady Takeo. We'll take off our seal," the man said and raised his sleeve. The patch was there and he slowly ripped it off. Snot dripped down my nose, I was starting to feel emotional. Did they really believe in me? I wiped my eyes and bowed my head multiple times. I wasn't sure what to say to them. I never experienced this before.

I looked back at Morina who was standing behind Madara. I quickly rushed over to her and grabbed her hands. "Are you okay? I'm sorry…" I whispered. She smiled at me, but I was too ashamed. I kept my head down, gripping her hands even tighter.

"I'll be fine, stop worrying."

I looked up at her and she freed one her hands to bring it to my face. She brushed my hair out of my face, her eyes immediately focusing on the side of my forehead. I blushed and moved away from her, scratching my nose nervously. "Okay, I'll stop," I said quickly. I brushed past Madara, but he grabbed my shoulder and forced me to turn to him.

I slapped away his hand.

His eyes moved all around my face, I got nervous again, more nervous. "Stop staring, creep," I muttered. Madara's face, which held a smugy look, twitched with irritation. "I was staring at that weird looking scar you have, idiot!" he crossed his arms and huffed. His eyes moved to the direction Mori was walking and lingered there for a moment before turning back to me. "Good job, Isoroku," he said before going to Morina. He didn't grab her hand to hold, or wrap his arm around her. He pressed his hand in the middle of her back and they walked away. The sight made my stomach turn and I looked back to Akio and my men before I started crying again.

Akio tilted his head and gave me a look of pity.

It's too late. The waterworks were happening now and it would probably be all night.

"Lady Takeo is crying again."

"We made the right choice, right?"


	16. Chapter 16

I tilted my head and stroked my chin slowly. I was smiling in satisfaction as I watched my men follow each and every order I had given them. I did not expect them to listen to me so quickly, I thought I would have to fight with them a little, but I didn't have to do that.

"This is impressive, Isoroku. I never would have imagined someone like you would be commanding a group of loyal shinobi."

I frowned at the voice and crossed my arms. "That makes two of us. I'm not doing anything special though. They're just practicing what you have taught me," I sighed as I turned to Madara. He was smirking down at me, seemingly pleased at the sight of me commanding a bunch of sweaty men to spar with each other. I avoided his eyes and looked back to my men. "I was too caught up in the moment the other day… maybe Mori shouldn't have left," I whispered. I do want to change the way my clan works, but maybe I acted too quickly. Mori was the one who was in charge of this. He made sure everyone was at least doing some type of training. I have no clue how to handle everyone here… I'm just making my way along, hoping I don't mess up.

"Don't start with that!" Madara barked. I flinched and looked back at him surprised. "Don't bring back that poor little girl who hid behind others," he said pointing a finger at me. His eyes were staring at me hard, making me freeze up. I held my breath and watched him intently. "Lead these men on your own. You aren't some kid anymore," he said shaking his head. I looked down at my shoes, feeling ashamed for wanting to go back to how things were. "I'm sorry," I whispered and Madara's hand plopped down on my head, ruffling my hair. I wanted to lean into his hand even more. I felt like some lovesick puppy who just wanted to be pet more. "You're new to this. Just need to be reminded," he sighed. I looked up at him, his hand still lingering on my head. At this moment Madara was uncharacteristically smiling down at me. It wasn't a big smile, it was small and slightly crooked. It made my heart to flip flops in my chest. Why couldn't he smile at me more like that? Why did he always have to frown or glare at me?

I forgot about my men training out in the open field. It felt like it was just Madara and me. I reached for his hand and pulled it away from my hair. I felt him tense up from my touch, but I didn't pay any real mind to it. I closed my eyes and leaned into him, pressing my cheek against his chest. "What're you doing?" Madara asked quietly. He had gripped my shoulders as I nuzzled into him in complete bliss.

"Takeo…"

My smile grew when I heard him use my name. How weird it was to feel this way. Why was I letting myself get so carried away by a single touch? It shouldn't do anything for me, but here I am practically digging myself into him. I looked up at Madara, grinning slightly. His eyes had widened slightly, apparently, I caught him off guard. I don't know why, but I enjoyed that.

"What is it?" I asked with a low voice. I was in some sort of daze right now. Madara had opened his mouth to speak, but quickly closed it. He scrunched up his eyebrows and looked away. Was he like this with Morina? Her name had immediately snapped me out of my daze and my body was suddenly filled with disgust. Not towards Madara, but towards me. I quickly moved away from him and avoided his confused look. Did he want to stay like that longer? Or was he just confused about everything that had happened? My mind was racing so fast and I didn't want to even think about Morina at the moment. Why would I do something like this? It may have been simple to a person watching, but it meant and felt more than anything to me when it shouldn't.

"S-sorry! I don't know what got into me!" I laughed nervously. I scratched the back of my head and still continued to avoid his eyes. "Thanks for the, uhhh, motivation. Good job," I rambled on. I mentally rolled my eyes. Good job? C'mon Takeo you aren't even trying now.

"O-of course, idiot. I can't have you weighing yourself down. You won't be of any use like that."

I turned to Madara. His eyes had widened again.

"Of course, I can't lose any sort of use to you now," I agreed softly. Madara sucked in a deep breath, possibly searching for new words to say, but he simply shook his head and turned away from me. "We'll train tomorrow, I'm needed somewhere else," he said before walking away. I didn't let my eyes follow after him.

"So, blunt, Takeo. Didn't even try to hide it."

My face heated up and I looked to see Akio grinning at me. I made a face at him and crossed my arms. "Shut up. I was just all caught up and stuff, wasn't thinking right," I sighed. Akio used his hand to cover up his smile and looked away. "Sure, sure…" he said. "Makes me wonder how that other guy would feel…" he chuckled. I blinked my eyes and tilted my head.

"What other guy are you talking about?" I asked.

Akio shook his head. I obviously wasn't getting something here.

"The other guy. You know… white hair…"

"O-oh! He wouldn't care at all!" I laughed. Akio rolled his eyes at me.

I haven't had the chance to ask Akio how he was feeling about Mori leaving. I was putting it off because I was so nervous to ask. He seemed okay though, but I would catch him throughout the day staring off into the distance with a solemn look.

"Um, Akio…"

"Yes?"

I pursed my lips. "How is the training with Izuna going?" I asked slowly. Akio smiled and scratched his head. "Fine. Actually," he moved closer to me and brought up his hand to cover our mouths when we talked, as if to keep whatever he was saying a secret. "I've been teaching the others what I've been learning. They're doing quite nicely." I raised in eyebrow, "Really? That's so good!" I gushed. Akio chuckled and nodded his head.

"We're doing okay here, aren't we?"

I nodded my head. "I can't wait to share everything we've learned to the others back home," I whispered. It was a lie though. I didn't want to go home. Going back home meant I had to deal with my mom and Mori. I sucked in a deep breath. Just because my men might think of me in a different light that doesn't mean everyone back home will do the same. Things will just go back to how they were. The only thing that will be different is that we'll be stronger and there will be a different leader soon.

I groaned slightly, realizing that I was supposed to meet with Jiro soon. He expects me to just leave and not have my disappearance questioned. I rubbed my eyes and released a long-awaited yawn. "I'm done here. Have them take a rest soon, Akio," I muttered. I spun around and marched back to the barracks. I wasn't going to stick around and stress over things when I could instead do exactly that in the comfort of my own bed.

"You can't just leave!"

I turned my head and saluted to Akio.

"Watch me!"

-

I was lying in bed. Not exactly thinking, just staring at the stack of poems I had pushed to the corner of my room. I had in my possession… truthful words written by Madara. Those crinkled and torn up scrolls held his feelings and I had tricked my mind into thinking that they were meant for me to read. That Madara wanted me to know how he felt and that was the only way he could. It's delusional and borderline crazy, but it made me feel better when knowing that Morina held ones that Madara had written to express his love for her.

I closed my eyes and turned away. I keep trying to tell myself that this is some weird unnatural crush, but it doesn't help simmer me down. No matter how comedic I may come off when dealing with Madara… my feelings are genuine and I really do feel sad seeing him and Morina together. It's a terrible thing to say, I know.

I gripped my blankets and groaned loudly.

I can't let myself slip up again like today. I don't even know why I did that. How could I? It's so awkward too! I must've looked like some idiot and Madara was probably so creeped out that he couldn't find it in himself to shove me away.

Never mind all that. I came here to stress about other things.

I needed to worry about meeting up with Jiro and eventually going back home. What am I supposed to do when I go back? Kiss my mom's hand and wish her a farewell with a 'by the way I'm going to take over the clan and establish dad's ideas'?

She'd immediately, without any second thought, use her last dying breath to order the guards to apprehend me and banish me.

Mori is probably back with the clan already and shared my crazy ideas with them. He's probably built a hut right at the gate, waiting for me to show up with Jiro so he can sucker punch me back to the Uchiha.

This is so frustrating. Nothing is going right for me! Why can't everyone just all agree that making my life more difficult is not a good for my health and that they should just do everything they can to make it easier? I sat up from my bed and rubbed my eyes. Maybe I should just forget about everything and disappear. Let everyone deal with their own problems and mind my own. Why should I try to fix a clan that turned its back on my dad? Why did I even agree to do a mission for them when they were glad to have learned that he had died? Whether anyone wants to admit it or not, we all know how everyone felt when a search team found the body belonging to leader who was so far ahead of everyone that it scared them.

I hugged my arms and let my head fall.

"They should all just die off," I whispered to myself.

I fell face first into the bed and sighed. How easier would it be if they were all gone? I shifted onto my side. This type of thinking was starting to become similar to Morina's. She was okay with her family being gone, right? Because they didn't fit her way of how people should be she wasn't sad when they died. I sighed. Maybe she was getting into my brain somehow and making me think this way. I shouldn't want something like that. I let myself slip up again.

No matter how much I may dislike people back home I shouldn't wish for something like that to happen. Dad wanted nothing more than to protect them and help them grow… I would be doing the exact opposite of what he would have wanted if I just let them ruin themselves. I let my hand drop from the edge of the bed and reached under to grab a small box. Still laying down I brought the box onto the bed, setting it down next to me. The box was filled with medical supplies. A smile creeped onto my face as I stared at it. Tobirama said to use for when I hurt myself, but I don't think I could bring myself to waste everything inside it. I want to keep it unused and just hold onto the memory of him giving it to me.

"I should… I should heal the clan and keep it from destroying itself, right… dad?" I asked as I traced my finger over the smooth wood of the box. I smiled again and closed my eyes.

"Big words for a lazy girl," I sighed.


	17. Chapter 17

"You actually come here?" I asked as I knelt down beside the water. Morina turned to me and nodded her head. She pointed to the sun with her finger then slowly led it down to the small body of water. "The sun points directly down at the water and makes it quite warm. It is also deep enough for us to sink our entire bodies, making it a nice place to wash up and relax," she said with a smile.

We had left the compound and traveled for about a few minutes. As we were walking Morina suddenly grabbed my arm and pulled me off the trail. During that quick second of her pulling me my life had flashed before my eyes and I thought she was going to murder me. Maybe she was angry with my little snuggle up with Madara and had finally snapped. Or she felt I was too similar to her family and had planned to kill me. Well, she did neither and instead happily throw her arms out in excitement as the water came into view.

"Why come here?" I asked looking around. The tall trees had created a nice shade for us where we were standing. It was nice… everything was nice.

"You've been busy lately. With your training and dealing with your men and uh, Mori… was it?"

I nodded my head.

"You also left the compound a few short days ago with Mori, not for your training, but for another reason. You came back looking very distressed… so I wanted to bring you here to relax."

I had kept my eyes focused on the water. She knew me and Mori left? Despite the warm air surrounding us I felt cold to the very bone. How much did she actually know? I took a gulp and finally looked at Morina. "That's very considerate of you," I chuckled. She grinned and began to slip off the shirt she was wearing. My eyes widened in shock and embarrassment. I quickly turned my head and released a low cough.

"Get in the water, Takeo."

I was shocked to hear the order come from her. I never stopped to consider how strong Morina might actually be. She obviously knew something about me that she shouldn't… was she going to confront me here and stab me to death or something?

I moved to take off my shoes and set them to the side nicely. I unbuttoned my shorts and slipped them down quickly. I was wearing a long shirt today so it was covering my birth defect. I paused for a moment and looked at Morina who was already in the water. Her clothes were tossed to the side messily, getting dirty in the mud. She nodded to me and gestured for me to continue. My cheeks flushed and I shook my head.

"I-I don't want to…" I whispered.

"You can't get into the water with a shirt on," she sighed.

I continued to stand there. I was in a state of shock that wouldn't allow me to move. Morina knew something and she obviously wanted me to show my birth defect which would leave me very vulnerable. I sucked in a deep breath and slipped off my shirt. I stepped into the water and it was warm just like Morina said earlier. The mud below squished between my toes as rocks and sticks pressed against the bottom of my feet painfully. I walked until the water covered my birth defect on my hip.

"You don't want to go in deeper?"

I shook my head. "I can't exactly swim…" I muttered. I scratched my head and mentally kicked my ass for not being able to swim despite being a water release user. How stupid of me.

Maybe Tobirama could teach me how to swim- okay, I'm getting off track now.

Morina grinned and her eyes trailed down to my hip then went back to my face. "Madara tells me you are growing strong. How do you feel personally?"

My face heated up again. Did he really talk about me with her?

"I-I feel like I can do better," I answered. I paused for a second.

"I want to learn more-"

"So, you can share it with the others?" Morina asked with a weird pitch in her voice. My lips twitched, not knowing what to say. "Of course, my, uh, men deserve to learn whatever I have learned. It'll only make us more useful to the Uchiha if we are all stronger," I said slowly. Morina gave me a smirk. I never seen her smirk before and the image of her smiling kindly at me was starting to vanish. The close connection I felt I was beginning to develop with her was slowly deteriorating before my eyes.

"I don't think you mean just your men, Takeo."

Morina moved closer to me. I took a step back instinctively and my foot found its way into a sinkhole, making me fall backwards. I gasped and my head was dunked, allowing water to rush into my mouth. I immediately sprang up from the water and rushed to shore, coughing my lungs out.

"I heard Mori yelling the day he left. Apparently, your brother has made progress with the Senju and you haven't? There was also something about a note that you didn't get, but your brother did if I'm not mistaken."

Morina slowly walked towards me. It was like she was some monster.

"You're also sad about Madara and I?" She asked with a smile. I was still coughing the water out. I was covered in mud as I sat on the shore.

"Don't think Madara hasn't noticed your obvious affections. He's so distracted by that he hasn't even begun to notice how suspicious you are. He's so busy with leading his own people, making sure you are adequate, and fighting the Senju that he can't even stop and see your lies," she spat at me. Morina's face was turning red from how angry she was. She suddenly threw herself on me, trying to wrap her fingers around my throat. I pushed against her shoulders to keep her up from me.

"He was so generous to you and all you did was use him in the end!" She yelled at me. Tears started to slide down her cheeks and slowly drip onto me. Morina wasn't strong at all. Her grip was weak and I could easily push her off if I wanted to. I was still scared though. I didn't want to hurt her in anyway.

What am I going to do about Morina knowing?

I couldn't bring myself to kill her. I can't even think about killing a person.

"If you liked him so much why would you use him like this, Takeo?" She cried at me. She was shaking so much that she reminded me of a small, cold, wet dog. Her eyes were shut so tight I thought blood might drip from them instead of tears. The way she looked now, so small and vulnerable made me want to wrap my arms around her even though she was currently trying to strangle me.

My terrified expression had slowly warped into what I have imagined a crazy delusional smile. I had one hand pressed against her to continue holding her back and used the other to reach for her cheek to brush away the tears. She quickly opened her eyes and began to sob.

"Why, Takeo… if you really did care for me then why would ever even think about Madara the way you do right now?" She asked. I couldn't answer her. There was nothing I could say to her that would make her feel better or even me.

Morina released her hands and sat herself on me. She wiped at her tears and I just stared blankly at her.

"Madara would never tell me about this source of power your people have. No matters how many times I asked he wouldn't tell me," she whispered.

She looked down at my hip to see the birth defect. I watched as her hands slowly moved to it.

"This is it… if I touch it will it make me stronger?" She asked me, her eyes still looking down at it. I looked up to the sky and nodded my head. "You'll absorb all my chakra if you hold your hand on it for long enough," I answered. Was I scared? A little, but I sort of felt empty inside. I was drained of my energy and just wanted to sleep for a long time. I was really throwing myself into the idea that Morina could be someone I could trust and be close to. Seeing her like this crushed me and made me feel even more lonely. My eyes started to sting with tears and I immediately covered up my eyes with my arm. A quiet sob escaped from me and I heard a sigh. I deserve this, don't I? If I didn't grow feelings for some stupid gorilla like Madara or come here I wouldn't have had to deal with this. I should have just stayed home and not be swayed by everyone's opinion of me.

Suddenly a shocking pain had run through my body. As if I was shocked by something very strong. It felt like tiny sharp knives were stabbing into my hip over and over. My body was suddenly going against itself and I felt a sickness slowly make its way up to my throat. I managed to roll myself onto my stomach and raise myself up before I vomited into the mud. My arms were shaking along with my legs as I struggled to stay up. All of this… just because someone touched the birth defect? Is this how weak we really are?

I was heaving now and sweat was running down my forehead. I threw myself to the side so I wouldn't land in my own spew. Gasping for air I looked down at the birth defect and saw that it was red. I groaned and looked for where Morina was.

She was standing next to me looking at me with curiosity on her face.

Her hair framed her face so nicely. Even at this weird angle she looked pretty. A smile slowly creeped its way back onto my face despite the situation. Even if she did touch the birth defect to absorb my chakra I still couldn't really hate her. She had some weird fix on me that wouldn't let me get away from her or despise her for very long. I guess I'm just so desperate for someone to be at my side that I'll accept nearly anyone.

"How can you still look at me like that, Takeo?" She asked.

I shrugged my shoulders.

"Guess I'm just lonely."

Morina chuckled and shook her head as she walked away to her clothes. She dug through them and finally pulled something out. She spun around and held a kunai in her hand. "I don't want Madara to waste any more time on you. Don't worry though… I won't tell him what I know. It'll only cause him more stress and he'll probably just go and kill off your men along with the rest of your clan," she answered. I couldn't help but laugh at her. "That's really considerate of you," I whispered.

My eyes followed as she knelt down beside me. Her hand was shaking slightly, but her face held determination to just stab the shit of me.

I don't want to die. There's so much I promised to do for my clan, but I felt so empty right now. My body is also too heavy to make a move to escape. Any little movement as well brought sharp pains all over. I closed my eyes and released a low breath. I brought this on myself. I was careless with everything and I couldn't bring myself to fight Morina back, even though I could have easily done so.

I waited for the kunai to be plunged into me, but suddenly there was a gust of wind and Morina had screamed. My eyes immediately opened and I looked for her. She was now lying on the ground far away from me. Her body was shaking.

I blinked my eyes, wondering what happened. She couldn't have thrown herself over there.

"Were you really going to let her do that?"

A shadow was casted on me and I looked up and saw Mori standing over me. I groaned and tried to wiggle away, but shoved his boot onto my chest and stopped me. "Get away from me!" I yelled, but it only made the man smirk.

"You should be thanking me, Lady Takeo. If I didn't show up and kick her away from you… you'd be dead right now. Be grateful for once," he scolded me. All I could do was glare at him.

"Didn't Jiro tell you to meet up with him too?" He asked amused.

I stayed silent.

"You forgot, didn't you? Why is it always me having to deal with all your incompetence? I'm not your dad," he sighed. I sucked in a deep breath and spit at Mori's face, successfully making it to his cheek. "You're the reason this happened. If you weren't so loud Morina wouldn't have found out!" I shouted at him. Mori narrowed his eyes and swiped away my spit from his mouth. He took his boot off my chest and it was suddenly easier for me to breath.

"Sorry about that," he said, but there was no remorse in his voice. I continued to glare, but was caught off guard when Mori kicked me. I screamed and my body was turned over by his foot. I was face first into the mud now. I tried to bring myself up, but I was still too weak.

I moved my head so I could see Mori and the last thing I saw was his foot coming in to kick me again.


	18. Chapter 18

"Do you understand what is going to happen, Takeo?"

I just woke up a few minutes ago with a huge headache. My body felt heavy and my head was throbbing thanks to Mori's boot. I was in a dark spacious room filled with important people. Those people would be the leader of my clan and some old people who think that just because they're wrinkly that they have a say in what happens.

My body swayed and I was about to fall off the chair when a pair of hands grabbed onto me and held me down. The grip was too tight for my body and I released a painful groan.

"Takeo, I need a direct answer from me. Do you understand what is going to happen?"

I looked at the leader. She was sitting at the center of the table. The leader wore heavy, extravagant looking robes. She had dark circles under her eyes and her face was sunken in, telling me that she is severely sick. I licked my lips, "I don't know what I'm doing here. Why did Mori bring me here?" I asked slowly.

The leader pursed her lips and brushed back a few strands of hair from her face. "The clan has been informed of what you ordered your men to do while in the presence of the Uchiha. That is crime to your people so we ordered Mori to bring you back for punishment," she answered with a shaky voice. I don't think she was nervous, she's just sick and doesn't have any strength. I sucked in a deep breath and shut my eyes when the room started to spin. How long am I going to feel like this? Morina barely touched my birth defect for a second… I shouldn't be this sick.

Wait, where is Morina?

"You put your men in danger and are no longer fit to be the leader of your group. That automatically makes your mission a failure. We've also been notified of your plans to take over Isoroku and continue on with the plans of former clan leader Tomio Isoroku, which is a serious issue that cannot happen."

I opened my eyes and glared at the leader. "What exactly are you going to do?" I asked, trying to keep calm, but anger was starting to grow at the pit of my stomach.

"She's certainly grow quite a bit during here time at the Uchiha," an elder chuckled.

"Lady Takeo seems to have lost her manners… how dare she give us that dirty look," another scoffed.

The leader looked down at a bunch of scattered papers, before answering me. Her hands shook as she grabbed a single one and started reading from it.

"As agreed by everyone here today you are to be executed for your radical ideas. We simply can't risk another Tomio as leader of our clan when the time comes. Do not worry though, Jiro will take your place and ensure the continuation of our clan, which we believe is something you wanted in the end."

My eyes widened. They're going to kill me? All because I share the same ideas as my dad? Just for that?

"It's funny to think that even if this didn't happen that you would have actually become the leader," an elder sighed. My heart was about to burst from my chest. I was going to die? I literally just woke up minutes ago and now I'm going to die?

"W-wait, mom! You can't be serious!" I cried as I fought against the hands that were holding me to the chair. I looked up and saw that it was Mori who was holding me back. I released a scream and thrashed around, eventually being lifted from the chair and dragged away.

"You can't just kill me for this! What about the Uchiha? We made progress there!" I yelled as I kicked my legs out. My eyes never left her face as she continued to look down at her desk. Her lips were trembling and finally she looked up at me. I managed to break free from Mori and stumbled forward to her desk. I grabbed onto her hands and I could feel how cold she was.

"Please, don't kill me for this. I know we never saw eye to eye, especially when dad died, but you can't do this," I begged. I must've looked disgusting, begging for my life like this. I was shaking almost as much as her and snot was running down my nose. "Send me back to the Uchiha. I promise I will complete my mission and keep everyone safe," I cried brokenly. I want to make dad's vision for the clan come true, but I can't do that if I'm dead. I have to do what I can to stay alive.

I felt Mori grab at me again and I gripped my mom's hands tighter. I lowered my head onto the desk and sobbed loudly. "Don't do this! I promise I'll be good!" I yelled. I was desperate, and was willing to drag my mom out of the room with me. I was terrified of the idea of being executed. Dying never seemed so scary until now.

"I'm sorry for this. I'll get Lady Takeo out of here and begin the execution process immediately," Mori apologized. There was one final tug and I lost my grip on my mom. She reached for my hand, but didn't grab it in time.

"N-no, Mori. Don't take her," mom ordered.

"You can't be serious. We can't risk your daughter putting our clan in danger."

Mom brushed back her hair with her fingers and quickly swiped at her cheek. Was she crying?

"She promised she'll be good. We also can't give up on the Uchiha with the progress Takeo made—"

"So, she says! I think she's lying!"

I shook my head and broke free from Mori. I pressed my forehead to the ground, bowing deeply. "I promise you I am not lying. I've learned to control my chakra and increased my fighting capabilities. Akio has also learned how to create various types of deadly poisons. I promise you that if you let me go back that I can get more information!" I yelled. My eyes were glued shut, waiting for Mori to grab me again.

"How can we possibly trust her?" an elder questioned quietly. I pounded my fists onto the floor.

"You can trust me!"

"I don't buy this. Send her on her way, Mori."

Mori sighed in relief and grabbed my again. "Gladly," he said quietly.

"Wait! What about the prisoner you brought back with Takeo?" Mom asked with strain in her voice. Mori tightened his grasp on me, clearly frustrated.

"In your report, it was stated that she was a special interest for Madara Uchiha and also… also a close friend to Takeo," mom whispered. I blinked my eyes. Morina is a prisoner here? I moved my hand to my birth defect, remembering her attack on me. Despite what happened I still wanted to make sure she was safe. She was the first one to make me feel that I was cared for, she felt genuine even if in the end it wasn't.

I was never able to feel that from anyone before. That's why I wanted to always be around her.

"That's correct. Lady Takeo apparently has very deep feelings for despite some altercations…" Mori sighed.

Mom nodded her head and turned to me.

"The only way you can prove yourself is if you kill her, Takeo. I want you to show that you are willing to kill for this clan. Kill a dear friend for this clan…"

I blinked my eyes.

Kill?

I looked down at my hands. I imagined blood splatters on them and how hard it would be to forget about them and wash them off. It would be like a tattoo for me…

"The prisoner is close to Madara Uchiha? Well, if Lady Takeo does kill her than she can surely take her place next to that filthy Uchiha. It will be a nice way to get more information out of that disastrous clan," an elder mused. Tears slowly slid down my cheek.

"She can't do it. I suggest we carry on with the execution," Mori stated.

I looked up at mom with tears still going down my cheeks. She leaned forward, trying to get a closer connection to me.

"She tried to kill you, Takeo. That's what Mori saw when he found you. Why do you still feel such a way towards her?"

I smiled shakily.

"She is my first friend."

-

I watched as the cell door opened. There was a creaky noise and the guard nodded to Mori. I was thrown in quickly, landing on my stomach. I groaned and turned back to see the door close.

Mori approached the bars and crossed his arms, glaring at me. "Well, I certainly wasn't expecting this to happen…" he muttered. I stayed silent.

"I was hoping the execution would happen, but instead you managed to find your way out of that. Well, it can still happen if you decide to not kill your friend here," Mori said as he nodded his head to the right. I followed and saw in the next cell was Morina. Her hands were tied behind her back and bruises were scattered all over her face. My eyes widened and I rushed over. I tried to reach for her, but the bars were keeping me from touching her.

"W-what did you do to her?" I asked frantically, still trying to reach her.

"After you passed out she tried to get away. Taking your chakra certainly helped her, but I got her in the end."

I dropped my arms in defeat and stared at Morina. I didn't want to imagine her getting hurt by Mori. I sniffed looked away from her.

"You'll pay for that," I whispered. I don't know how, but I wasn't going to let Mori get away with hurting her. The brute raised an eyebrow in surprise. "You don't have much room for promises like that. You do know that killing her is the only way you'll survive, right? Why threaten me for giving her a few bruises when you have to end her life?" Mori laughed. I closed my eyes and leaned against the cold metal bars. Is there really no other way? If I chose not to kill her then I'll be executed and she'll follow right after me. There's not a chance that my clan would keep a foreigner here alive. They're too scared. I had the choice to let my clan kill her or me.

"Takeo?"

I opened my eyes and looked to where Morina was. She was sitting up and staring at me. I heart skipped a beat just by seeing her awake. "Y-you're okay?" I asked shakily. Morina blinked her eyes and reached for her face, flinching when her fingertips touched her cheek. "It hurts…" she whispered.

"Where are we?" She asked.

I hesitated for a moment and scratched the back of my neck.

"We're currently at the Isoroku compound. They placed us in a holding cell," I answered.

"Sure friendly now that you're in unfamiliar territory," Mori chuckled. Morina's eyes widened and she turned to look at the man. "Y-you!" She hissed, backing away. She looked back to me and glared.

"Madara will come looking for me! He'll kill you all for doing this to me and for betraying him!" She yelled. I looked down and shook my head. There wouldn't be enough time for him to come and save her. The minute he notices that Morina has been gone for too long she would be dead. I had to come to terms with that.

My lips quivered and I turned to Mori.

"I'll do it…" I whispered. His eye's widened and he uncrossed his arms. "You want to give this a little more thought?" He asked and I shook my head at him. He didn't want me to do this. Doing this would ensure my survival which is the last thing he wanted here.

"I said I'll do it. Get me out of here!" I yelled.

"Do what?" Morina asked. Her voice raised in pitch and she backed up more, pressing herself against the cell wall. I avoided her gaze and watched as the guard slowly opened my door. "I was expecting this to take longer," he admitted.

I got up from the ground and walked out of my cell.

"Wait, Takeo! Don't leave me here!"

My shoulder was suddenly grabbed and I was turned to face Mori. His face was red with anger and his eyes were ready to pop out.

"Your father wouldn't have wanted you to go down this path," he growled. Was he really going to try and pull the dad card on me now? Is this how desperate he is for me to die? I rolled my eyes at the man, "I'm sure he wouldn't have wanted me to die either. He'll accept my decision," I sneered.

"She's a close friend to you, right? Tomio would have rather gave his life then do this to a friend!" Mori shouted. I looked over to Morina who rushed to the bars, gripping them tightly. "Do what to a friend?!" she questioned hysterically. I bit my lip and tore my eyes away from her. "How would you know?" I whispered. Mori's face darkened and he grabbed my arms tightly. I flinched at the tight grasp and looked back to the guard who seemed conflicted on what to do.

"Let go of me. I made my decision whether you like it or not!" I yelled.

"I know because I killed Tomio," Mori whispered. There was no point in whispering because everyone could hear it. I felt like I needed to hear it a second time though. The pain Mori was inflicting on my arms from his tight grasp couldn't compare to the pain in my chest.

"I followed Tomio out into the forest. He knew what was going to happen, but didn't stop me. He couldn't bring himself to hurt a friend and allowed me to kill him. Now, do you really believe your father would be happy with you decision?"

The guard finally acted and shoved Mori away from me. The man didn't fight as the guard pushed him into my cell and locked the door. All I could do was watch.

"There's no point in doing this. I was ordered to do this by the village elders! You'll have to let me out!" Mori shouted to the guard, but he was ignored.

"You're going to kill me, Takeo?" Morina asked softly. I looked at her and I suddenly wanted her to shut up, nothing more. My body was shaking and I was lead out by the guard. His hand gripped my arm gently, as if to keep me from falling to the ground.

Once we made it outside the small building I saw Jiro standing there. His face was filled with worry.

I shook the guard off of me and approached my brother.

"Mother told me what happened. I-I don't know what to say, Takeo…" he said. Did Jiro know about what happened to dad? No, the guard seemed to not have known, so why would Jiro? Was this some secret kept from the whole clan? Did mom know?

"Did she offer you the chance to become the next head?" I asked with a low voice. I was trying my best to keep calm, but all I wanted was to scream and break stuff. Mori thought telling me the truth would sway my decision on killing Morina… how stupid of him.

"She… said if you were unable to complete the task given to you then you would be executed and I will have to accept the position," he answered.

"Do you want it?"

Jiro shook his head.

"Good. Because I'll be the next in line and you're going to be by my side when I do and protect me," I said. If the elders are willing to kill dad for mere ideas he had then there's no reason they wouldn't do the same to me. More than ever did I feel motivated to get rid of the old in my clan. It wasn't all for the goodness of bettering my clan… it was for revenge. The elders and Mori were all going to see the ideas of a dead man come true and I can't wait to see the horror on their faces.

I turned to the guard.

"Go get the leader and elders. Tell them I'm ready," I ordered. The guard nodded his head and quickly left to go fetch them.

"Takeo… what happened?" Jiro questioned. I chuckled and brushed my hair back with my fingers. "I'll tell you when the time is right. But, do you promise to protect me when I become leader?" I asked looking up at Jiro. My brother nodded his head and smiled down at me. "Of course. I promise."

"Good."

I walked back into the building and approached Morina's cell. Her face was puffy from crying and she bowed her head to me. "Please, Takeo. Don't do this!" She begged. I stared down at her, I couldn't feel anything for her anymore. She was standing in my way to change my clan and she needed to go.

She tried to do the same exact thing Mori did to my dad. She tried to kill me and I was too afraid to hurt her because I considered her a friend. She belittled me and took my chakra. She's no different from Mori.

"Madara will notice something. He'll kill you for this!" Morina sobbed. I shook my head at her.

"Madara isn't going to notice anything. You're going to disappear and that'll be it. He'll forget about you because you are weak-"

"You're weak too! Don't act like you're any different!"

I grinned at her.

"When I go back to him I'll be stronger. I'll take your place and he won't even remember your name," I whispered. Morina banged her fists on the ground and released another ugly sob.

"Uh, Lady Takeo… they're here…" the guard said as he entered the building. I turned to the guard and nodded my head.

"Open up her cell."

"Right away."

The door made a creaky noise and Morina cried harder. I entered the cell and stood in front of Morina. She refused to look up at me.

"Don't, Takeo!" Mori shouted as he shook the bars to his cell.

"I'm not going to change my mind, Mori and you're the reason why. I refuse to be the one who will be executed today," I said, still staring down at Morina. I reached down and grabbed her roughly by her hair. It was soft and silky between my fingers, making them twitch in surprise.

I dragged her out of cell and she kicked her feet out in defiance.

We made it outside and everyone was waiting. Their eyes widened as they watched me drag Morina like this. Jiro's face paled as he watched me.

"You're… you're ready, Takeo?" Mom asked. I nodded my head.

"You'll be killing her for the clan, correct?" an elder asked. I nodded my head, trying to hide my anger. I wanted to kill them too, but I had to wait until they watched this clan change.

"Give me a kunai. She tried to kill me with one earlier so I'll do the same," I said as I held out my hand for one. Jiro reached into his weapon pouch and pulled one out. He stared at it for a moment and slowly handed it to me.

"Takeo, please!" Morina begged looking up at me.

I stared down at her, letting a smile grow on my face. I knelt down, still holding onto her hair to keep her from escaping. I pressed the kunai against her neck and she gasped. "It'll be quick," I whispered in her ear and she closed her eyes tightly.

I dragged the sharp weapon across her neck and a short whimper was heard.


	19. Chapter 19

"Are you okay, Takeo?"

I blinked my eyes and looked to Akio who was giving me a worried look. I nodded my head and looked away from him, staring off into the distance. There was a nice soft breeze in the air that was very calming.

"I...I know how much that girl was important to you. I'm sorry to hear about her," Akio whispered as he placed his hand on my shoulder. I sighed and tilted my head a bit. When would be the good time to see Madara? Ever since Morina's body was found he's been distant.

I understand, of course.

"Yeah, it was a real shame to find out that she was killed," I muttered. After killing Morina her body was placed back at that bathing area she took me to. My tracks were covered, making sure that I couldn't be connected to her murder and I managed to make it back to the Uchiha undetected. The only thing I'm sorry for was that Madara was the one who had to find her. He noticed she was gone for too long and went out looking for her. He didn't show much emotion after finding her, but you can tell something is wrong with him. You would constantly lose his attention and he'd disappear off on his own.

I kicked at the dirt and turned to Akio. "Make sure the men get take a break during their training. Also, good job on learning medical ninjutsu," I grinned as I playfully and lightly punched Akio's arm. The boy's face brightened and he chuckled nervously. "It isn't much. Thank you though. I never would have imagined doing anything like this," he whispered as he looked down at his palm. He closed and reopened it, while allowing a smile to grow on his face.

"We really are changing here, aren't we?"

I nodded my head.

"There's more to come as well. I'll make sure of it," I promised. I just have to somehow get closer to Madara. Just how close was he to Morina for him to be acting this way? I know this is basically a grieving process for him, but I can't waste any more time. I also don't want to push too far and ruin my chances with him.

"I need to go find Madara. I'll see you later," I said as I started walking away.

"See you, Takeo!"

Let's see… where would I go if I was Madara Uchiha? Would I go sulk at home? No, too typical. Would I go out and train? More likely, but let's still keep our options open. I tapped my chin and continued walking through the compound.

Ever since I learned the truth of my dad and killed Morina… I felt my being as whole completely change. I can't describe it quite yet, but I no longer feel a strong sense of passion anymore. The only thing I feel strong for is the need to get back at everyone who wronged my dad and get stronger. I was so lonely as well, but now I can care less about if anyone is at my side or not.

There was this whole idea of bringing positivity, healing, and change for my clan, but who cares about that now? No one back home certainly does and I don't think they deserve it.

The library started to come into view. I stopped to stare at it, realizing that it's been awhile since I've gone. I used to go to find new poems, but after realizing that Madara was the one writing them and that some were for Morina… I stopped going. Would Madara be there? I shrugged and decided to give it a shot. I quickly went over and entered the building. The smell of dust immediately filled my nose and I went straight to the back of the building. That's where the poems were.

I passed shelves and shelves until I finally got to my area.

There he was.

He had his back to me, seemingly burying his face into a scroll. When he disappeared did he come here?

I approached him slowly. I sucked in a deep breath and released it slowly. I have to tread carefully right now.

"Madara, is this where you've been coming?" I asked softly. The man immediately straightened his posture, rolled up the scroll, and set it down slowly on the shelf. "None of your business," he said as he turned around. He didn't look sad. He had the same grumpy look on his face. You wouldn't be able to tell that anything was wrong with him.

I bit my lip and smiled at Madara. There was no game plan here, I had to figure out something quick or else I'll lose him. What could I do to make him stay with me? My heart was beating fast as I watched Madara begin to lose interest in me.

Finally, I realized it.

I forced myself to cry. It certainly caught the man off guard. His eyes had widened slightly and I dropped down to my knees, wiping quickly at my face. This is pathetic. Do tears always get to a man like this?

"Takeo…" Madara muttered. I looked up at him and felt my face flush. "I-I miss her too, ya know?" I whispered. Madara simply stared down at me with bored eyes. Did he take the bait? I can't be put off by those bored eyes because he always has them, no matter what.

"There's no point in crying-"

"Can we get a drink, please?" I laughed as fake tears continued to run down my face slowly. This caught Madara off guard and he was rendered speechless for a moment. He licked his lips and I watched intensely. Was he going to just brush me off and tell me to go drink on my own?

The man shifted on his heels and he jerked his head up, signaling for me to stand up. I did as he wanted and he walked past me. I followed him with my eyes until he turned around and motioned me to follow. My face immediately brightened up and I happily followed.

We ended up going to his home. I was a little surprised that he would take me here instead of a public place, but I wasn't about to complain. When he led me inside I saw that his place was a literal mess. Last time I was here it was so spotless and boring, but now it was a dirty and a little terrifying. I guess this is the only way to see that Madara was truly going through something at the moment. He wasn't going to show it physically, not in a way anyone could see it. The only way was to do it in private and in a way that he wouldn't even notice.

I tore my eyes away from the cracked coffee table and turned to Madara who now held two glasses in his hands. He handed me both of them and nodded me to the table to sit. He disappeared to go get the actual drink, I presume. I walked to the table, careful to not step on anything and knelt down, setting the glasses down. He didn't even bat an eye at the mess. He was completely blind to it all.

"I didn't take you for a drinker, Isoroku," Madara said, coming over with a dark bottle. He set the bottle down on the table and sat down on the floor with me. I'm not actually, this was the only way to get you to stick with me. I watched as he poured himself a drink and then I did the same for myself.

"I don't drink," I admitted as I held the cup to my lips. The smell turned me off immediately, but I gulped it down. My eyes nearly popped out of their sockets as the liquid burned my throat. I slammed the glass onto the table and started coughing. This earned a glare from Madara who simply watched me suffer.

"Why come here and waste my time then?" He barked. I managed to hold back a couple of coughs, but when I opened my mouth to speak I started coughing again. Madara rolled his eyes at me and stood up from the table. He walked around it and kneeled beside me and grabbed my arm, pulling me up with him.

"I don't have time for this. You need to go—"

"I-I just wanted to be with you. Please, just let me stay with you," I pleaded. This sounded so weird coming from me. I sound so desperate and that's because I am. I looked down at Madara's hand that was still gripping my arm. Madara's face twisted into something of annoyance. I slowly reached up and cupped his cheek, this is what finally got him. His eyes had widened and I smiled gently.

"I know… you're in a state of misery, but let me at least try to make you feel better," I whispered. He slowly released me and I used my now free hand to cup the other side of his face. Is this too much? My heart started beating faster, unsure of what to do next. Madara was just staring at me, not allowing me to break eye contact with him. He seemed so calm, but how was he really feeling? He did seem shocked by all the things I was doing. Was he just masking it now or did he get over it?

Madara closed his eyes and released a long sigh. He grabbed my hands at the sides of his face, pulling them down slowly. "You don't know how I feel, don't even try to understand me," he muttered and my heart skipped a beat.

"But you know how I feel, right?" I asked quietly. Madara didn't answer and I came closer to him, wrapping my arms around him and stepping on my tippy toes just to reach him. I still did have feelings for him. There was no mistake in that, but I need to use him in any way I can. I closed my eyes and pressed my lips against his. My face grew hot and I jumped slightly when hands touched my back. I was brought closer to Madara and I felt like I was getting crushed as our chests touched.

His lips moved against mine with a strong intensity that it was starting to overwhelm me. I couldn't help, but release a whimper. My chest was burning, but I was too afraid to let go of Madara. Is this too early to quit now? Would he just brush me off if I stopped now? I moved my hands to his hair, taking advantage of the moment to do something I probably won't even be able to do outside of this moment. I ran my fingers through it and eventually became more aggressive and grabbed it. It wasn't soft in anyway and there was so much that would make any girl jealous. It didn't have any tangles though, which was impressive. I noticed that he clung to me tighter when I gripped his hair. I couldn't help, but smile against his lips, making him let go of me.

"What?" he asked annoyed. I giggled and reached for his hair again, playing with it between my fingers. I pressed my lips against his jaw and relaxed against him. I felt like I was in heaven. I was finally able to be close to him without any sort of interference. "Do you like your hair getting pulled?" I asked slyly. This felt sort of natural in a way. I was acting as if we were in some real and healthy relationship.

"S-shut up, Takeo. I'll kick you out!" Madara threatened, but him wrapping his arms around me said otherwise.

What else am I going to have to do to keep Madara happy? My heart thumped against my chest hard, thinking of all the things I might have to do to keep him with me. I wasn't ready for this, but I guess I'll have to just pull through.

"I can feel you."

What?

"Your heart is beating at an almost stupid pace— "

"Only you would call my heart beat stupid," I retorted. Madara chuckled and I closed my eyes, feeling suddenly relaxed at the vibrations.

There was no way Madara was going to get over Morina so quick. I had to be aware of the fact that I'm just a distraction that will eventually lose its place with him. I have to enjoy it while I'm in the moment and get what I can from him.

I broke away from Madara and moved to the corner of the room where trash had gathered. Mostly crumpled up papers and bits of pieces from broken glass. "Let's clean up a bit, yeah?" I asked as I started picking up the trash.

"Ah, sure…" Madara muttered and went to the other side of room to clean, never coming too close to me. When we finally finished his home was spotless. When Madara brought me back the next day after training it was a mess again.

It was bigger this time.


	20. Chapter 20

"Tobirama," I said as a smile stretched on my face. My cheeks flushed a bit and my heart thumped against my chest a little harder. I haven't felt this genuinely excited in a while. The only things getting my heart beating faster is when I have to get intimate with Madara, or when I'm going up the stairs.

"You're different somehow, Takeo," Tobirama observed as he approached me. He scratched his chin and tilted his head, expecting me. My smile faded and I looked away. A lot happened since the last time I saw him. I allowed myself to be attacked by Morina and had her touch my birth defect. I learned about the truth behind my dad's death and killed Morina to save my own life, not that I minded in the end. It was the only option left for me and she was dead to me by that point. I also forced myself to become this new manipulative person, and took advantage of Madara's vulnerability just so that I can get closer to him and get more information. The world has never seemed so dark to me until now.

"Your face is sunken in and the dark circles under your eyes are more prominent—"

"Geez, that's what every girl wants to hear!" I yelled as I playfully punched Tobirama's arm. I chuckled and swayed back and forth. "Come here to train me?" I asked with a wide grin, but then I suddenly realized I haven't yet shown him the Clone Technique. I quickly waved my hands, stopping him from talking, Tobirama narrowed his eyes in response.

"Last time we met I didn't get to show you the Clone Technique! Remember when I told you I killed a fish and brought him back?" I asked. The man seemed freaked out by my behavior and nodded his head slowly, seemingly wary of what was going to happen next. I smirked and did the hand seals. "Be amazed by your girl's progress!" I sang and then it was time to get serious. I need to show Tobirama that he isn't wasting his time on me, that I am learning from him.

"Bunshin no Jutsu!"

I concentrated harder on the jutsu. It was something that I already managed to master and shouldn't even worry about, but I wanted to impress Tobirama so bad. There was a puff of smoke and my body relaxed. I can compare the feeling to really needing to poop and finally doing it and letting go of everything, so magical.

Once the smirk dispersed I was crossing my arms at Tobirama as a grin, that he would call childish, adorned my face. On each side of me there was a clone, mimicking my pose. "What do you think Tobirama? Pretty impressive, no?" I giggled. I waited for a response from Tobirama, I grew nervous as each second passed. He was too silent and there was no emotion on his face. My heart dropped and I turned to my clones, angry. "Augh, I should have made more! I knew two wouldn't be enough! Maybe three? Five?" I whispered to myself. Suddenly a hand plopped down on my head and I screeched. My clones vanished and I heard Tobirama chuckle quietly.

"Good job, Takeo."

I turned around and Tobirama was smiling down at me. My eyes widened and my cheeks flushed I couldn't help, but smile back wider. "Eh, you really think so? Thanks," I chirped, wanting to hear him praise me more. I'm relieved that he didn't call my clones weird looking like Madara. I'd probably bash my head against a tree trunk if I heard him make a comment like that.

"I think it's time you work on Kage Bushin no Jutsu," Tobirama said.

"The what no what?" I asked with a raised eyebrow. Tobirama glared and he bopped my head lightly. "Shadow Clone Jutsu!" he barked at me. I flinched and nodded my head quickly, "O-of course! That jutsu!" I laughed nervously. I scratched my cheek and turned to the side.

"Wait, that's the one you developed, right?" I asked. A cheeky grin grew on Tobirama's face. "At least you remember that important fact," he said, I think I boosted his ego quite a bit. I shrugged and scratched my head, "Some things just kind of stay with me and others do not," I laughed softly. But I didn't want to exactly want to waste my time learning another variation of the Clone Technique. Tobirama said he would eventually teach me water based jutsus and that's what I need to know.

I glanced over to the body of water in front of me and smiled slyly at Tobirama. "So, why don't we do something different?" I asked, but the man simply held a hand out to silence me.

"You are learning the Shadow Clone Jutsu. Once you mastered that then you will learn Suiton: Suijinheki—"

"Don't act like I know what that is, Tobirama," I muttered. The man rolled his eyes at me and crossed his arms in frustration. "It's the Water Release: Water Formation Wall. You will learn that next time, just have patience," he muttered, giving me a judgy stare. I squinted my eyes at him in displeasure. "Fine, fine…" I sighed.

Let's just get this over with.

-

I dropped to my knees and panted like a dog. "No more!" I yelled, holding out a hand to Tobirama. I shook my head in disbelief that trying to master this jutsu would be this hard.

"It's been 15 minutes, Takeo. Stand up."

I dropped to the dirt and laid on my stomach. "Has it really been that long?" I mused, dropping my tired act quickly. I heard a sigh and I lifted myself up and smiled at Tobirama. "I'm no match for your brilliant jutsu, just teach me the Suiton: Suijiwhatever. Maybe I'll have a better shot at that," I grinned, scratching my chin. Tobirama rolled his eyes, I think this was the 5th time I mentioned the jutsu. "It's the Suiton: Suijinheki, and no… I will not teach you it for the 8th time already!" he hissed. I raised an eyebrow, "I thought it was the 5th, oh well," I sighed. It really isn't wise for me to be annoying him. What if I push him too far and poof… he is gone? I bit my lip and slowly did the hand signs. "Sorry, I was just being a brat," I murmured. Tobirama raised an eyebrow at me and I slowly stood up from the ground.

I closed my eyes and focused hard on my chakra.

"Kage Bushin no Jutsu!"

A puff of smoke appeared and as it dispersed I looked to my right. There was my clone. She looked back to me and I tilted my head at her. I grinned and suddenly Tobirama moved over to her, brushing her hair off her shoulder. I gave a weird look, wondering exactly what he was doing. He was too close to her, almost intimately close.

"H-hey, buddy! She doesn't like that—"

Suddenly Tobirama moved to strike her and my heart jumped up to my throat.

"DODGE THAT!" I screamed at my clone. She followed my order and dodged. Tobirama moved to hit her again, but I yelled at her to dodge once more. I glared at Tobirama, seeing that he wasn't going to give up anytime soon.

"KICK HIS ASS, TAKEO!" I shouted at my clone. I waved my arms, cheering her on and she finally moved to attack. She lunged forward with a closed fist and with quite a strong force. Her attack was aimed for Tobirama's stomach, but he quickly moved.

"You're gonna have to do better than that," he chuckled, with a sort of mockery in his tone. I huffed in frustration and cupped my hands around my mouth.

"I'M ROOTING FOR YOU, TAKEO! I BELIEVE IN YOU!"

Tobirama looked at me, grinning… menacingly!

"I doubt she'll be able to land a hit anytime soon. This might drag on," he said, annoying me greatly. I crossed my arms and shot him a glare. "I do not care. As long as she lands a hit on your pretty face," I said with a smirk. Tobirama's eyes widened and he dropped his grin. His cheeks quickly flushed and my clone moved in for the kill.

She attempted a special Takeo Uppercut, but Tobirama moved just in time, dodging it. I groaned and dropped to my knees in despair.

Almost had him!

The fight between my clone and Tobirama dragged out for nearly an hour. I didn't even know I was capable of fighting that long, let alone my clone. It didn't even look like a fight, or spar at all. He was kind of just dragging her around, and dodged all of her punches, occasionally going for a few hits when my clone left herself open for one.

I was currently sitting in the dirt, drawing circles with a stick.

"Yeah, go, Takeo… whoop whoop," I muttered. I traced the stick in the dirt and pulled it away, looking at the drawing I made. I grinned and looked up to see Tobirama had punched my clone squarely in the face. My eyes widened and she disappeared, but once she did my body felt this weird sort of tingle.

"Yo, I feel strange," I laughed as I looked down at my hands and clenched them. I felt stronger somehow, even though I was sitting her drawing circles in the dirt for an hour. Tobirama approached me, looking down at me. His eyes immediately went to my drawing and he frowned.

"What is that?" he asked unamused.

"Circles."

"No, that one…"

I grinned and quickly used the stick to scribble out the drawing Tobirama was frowning at.

"Boobies."

"Mature of you," he muttered and used his shoe to dust away the rest of drawings. "Okay, rude, but wanna explain why I feel weird?" I asked standing up. I dusted off my pants and smiled at Tobirama.

"You can use your clone for training purposes. What your clone experiences you may experience as well. So, that's why you feel stronger, although, if you had joined in with your clone you would have gotten better results," he sighed. My mouth dropped at that information. That's possible?

"Y-you let me draw boobs in the dirt when I could have gotten even stronger if I had participated?! Dude!" I shouted as I pushed Tobirama. "That was your own choice, don't blame me," he scoffed.

"Whatever! But that's so weird… but cool… but so weird that my clone is capable of doing that," I whispered. I need to teach this to my men. This would help them so much. How would I explain that I know this jutsu if Madara were to find out though?

Oh well.

"Wait, I pretty much have the Kage Bushin no Jutsu down. Teach me the water thing now!" I said excitedly, nearly jumping up and down. Tobirama simply turned his head, scoffing once more. "Don't be so hasty," he scolded.

"But I want to learn! Teach me!" I pleaded as I reached for Tobirama's hand. I held it tightly, hoping he would give in to me and teach me how to do powerful water moves… or boil ramen with my mind or something.

I smiled softly, hoping my beautiful face will turn Tobirama's mind. I'm just kidding, I'm not that… that beautiful. But hopefully enough to get married. I shook the thoughts from my head and was pleased to see the usual stiff guy had an embarrassed look on his face. His eyebrows were furrowed and his face was twisted into an almost painful look. I was afraid that my touch was causing him actual physical pain and quickly dropped his hand.

"S-sorry…" I muttered, scared that I was going to get a Tobirama-fucking-uppercut.

"What?"

I scratched my cheek. "Uh, well, I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable. I-I can just wait to learn the water jutsu when I see you next time," I whispered. When would that actually be though? We don't exactly have a schedule to meet or anything… It could be two months from now and who knows if I'll even last that long with the Uchiha?

"Let me show you the Suiton: Suijinheki before I leave," Tobirama muttered. He walked past me and stared at the water. I stared at him, suddenly feeling awkward with him. Maybe I shouldn't grab his hand like that. He makes weird faces and I can't tell if he's about to kill me, or is just trying to keep his heart from beating out of his chest because he's in love with me.

I'm getting ahead of myself.

"Hey, watch! I won't do this twice, Takeo!"

Okay, he's back to his usual self.

Tobirama moved his hands quickly, not allowing me to see which hand seals he was doing.

"Suiton: Suijinheki!"

Tobirama sucked in a deep breath of air and suddenly heaved forward, opening his mouth to let water shoot out. I squeaked and the water eventually formed a wall. The jutsu was loud, making me cover my ears in reaction. Water also sprayed onto my face, cooling me down nicely. Although, I'm basically being sprayed by mouth water, so spit. I'm being cooled down by Tobirama's spit. That just put me off.

Once the jutsu was done Tobirama noticed the gross face I was making.

"Not impressed?" He asked annoyed. I looked at him and shook my head.

"I think it's amazing, but… the water was hitting my face," I explained.

An eyebrow was raised from the man and I could tell he was wondering if he should question me even more.

"It's like I'm being sprayed with your spit. S-since it's coming from your mouth—"

"DON'T BE CHILDISH!"

-

"Takeo, what's wrong with your cheek? It's all red," Akio muttered as he leaned in to inspect my cheek. I rubbed it and sighed.

"It got pulled by an angry water god."

"I'm not even gonna ask you to elabortate."


	21. Chapter 21

I scrubbed my hands roughly, dragging my nails against the knuckles, trying to get off the blood. I made a sound in frustration, realizing it wasn't going to come off so easily, it was stained on there. It had seeped under my skin, making it impossible to clean off.

With enough scratching from my nails my skin started to tear. The stinging pain did not bother me, I had grown used to it, all that mattered was that my hands get cleaned. I lifted my hands from the puddle of water and inspected them. They were red from the scratching and were shaking uncontrollably. My own blood was starting to seep through the wounds, mixing in with the blood I was trying to wash off. I groaned and shoved my hands back into the water, watching as the water began to turn red from the blood mixing into it.

"Damn!" I hissed.

No matter what soap I used, or how many times I washed my hands they were still stained. I ignored it at first, thinking it was just in my head, but no… my hands really are dirty. They're dirty and I need to clean them. What if Madara sees them? What will he think?

When I scratch my hands too hard I use the ointment Tobirama gave me, along with the bandages to cover them. No one asks why my hands are bandaged, so it makes things easier for me. But… knowing that my hands are like this… it makes me feel angry, disgusted, I almost feel lower than an insect.

I took my hands out of the water and reached for the rag beside me to dry them. After they were dry I grabbed the box Tobirama gave me filled with the ointment and bandages. I rubbed the ointment on one hand and began to wrap it slowly. I did the same with the other.

"You deserve this after what you did to Morina."

I raised my head, jumping from the voice. I turned to look for who was talking, but I saw no one around. My heart began to race, wondering who knew my secret. I stood up from the ground and tightened my fists, ready to attack whoever was talking.

"Your father must be ashamed of you for killing a precious friend."

I swung my body around, looking to see if there was anyone behind me. When I saw there was no one I dropped my head, and squeezed my eyes shut. I had to kill Morina, she attacked me and was standing in my way. If I didn't kill her I would have died… and then who would've made sure dad's vision came true? I turned back to face the water, slowly opening my eyes to see that my blood contaminating the water had mostly vanished.

"You're a murder, and you have to live with that."

I sighed and dropped my head into my palms.

"What are you doing out here?" A voice barked at me. I jumped slightly and turned around to see Madara frowning at me with his arms crossed. I blinked my eyes and quickly stood up. "I-I was just… washing my hands," I explained. Madara looked down at the bandages then back to my face. He was annoyed, but when isn't he?

"You're going to make us late for the meeting, idiot. I can't believe I actually came out here to get you," he groaned as he turned around, stalking off. I rolled my eyes at the man and grabbed the medicine box from Tobirama. After shoving everything back inside it I chased after Madara, quickly catching up to him.

"What is that?" he asked looking at the box in my hands.

"Oh, nothing-"

"As if. The wood on that thing is too nice to just be nothing. It looks expensive," he said snatching the box out of my hands. I reached for it, but he held it out of my grasp. "It was a gift, alright? Give it back!" I demanded, holding out my hand. Madara smirked at me and waved the box around, teasing me.

"Gift from whom?" he asked with a raised eyebrow and playful smirk. I felt my insides burning with rage and I wanted to hurt Madara. I forced myself to copy the Uchiha's playful mood and continued to hold out my hand. "My secret lover from a distant land," I joked and Madara rolled his eyes, immediately tossing me the box. I quickly caught it, holding it close to my chest.

"Whatever, pick up the pace."

"Ah, take a joke," I giggled, matching Madara's speed. I held the box in my hand farthest away from Madara, so he wouldn't grab it again. "You're the only one for me," I grinned. The man turned his head and scratched at his cheeks.

"Don't say stupid things, idiot."

I shook my head and continued walking.

Because of our relationship I managed to convince Madara to let me attend meetings with him. I've learned new training regimes that I soon passed down to my men, and just regular updates of what is going on with the Uchiha. They're usually boring, but it's nice to finally be included in something considered important like this.

"Don't speak unless spoken to."

"No one even sees me in those rooms. The only one who even knows I'm there is you. I can see the way you look at me, Madara. Your eyes hardly ever leave me," I whispered as I clung to his arm. I peered up at him like some lovesick puppy and saw that he had an irked face. I sighed and leaned against him, not ready to let go. "You look irritated, but you haven't shaken me off yet," I murmured as my eyes fluttered shut.

"It would be too much trouble," he grumbled.

I chuckled and soon we entered the compound and before I could count to three I was shaken off his arm. I straightened out my posture and quickened my pace. I was okay with this, I have to be. This is how Madara is… he doesn't show any type of weakness in front of people. At all times, he has to look like a strong leader for his people.

I kept my eyes focused on the ground as we walked. If I didn't see them they didn't see me.

"Keep your eyes low like that you're going to run into a wall."

My head shot up and I stopped in my tracks. We were at a small building and Madara was holding open the door for me. I looked at him, wondering if he was really doing something like this. His face soon heated up and he glared at me.

"I'm not going to hold it open all day, Takeo!"

I squeaked and quickly rushed inside with him following behind. "You have two personalities now, it's hard to keep up with you," he groaned as he walked behind me. I stayed silent, waiting for him to end his little rant.

"One minute you're annoyingly affectionate then the next you're like a scared mouse," he continued on, waving his hand back and forth. I turned back to him and smiled, "I like to keep you on your toes," I giggled. Madara shook his head at me and came to my side, stopping me from walking. His hand slowly raised to my face and he cupped my cheek. I couldn't help, but let a blush settle in.

"You look like some skeleton now," he muttered and I closed my eyes, irritated with his words.

"Thanks," I whispered and brushed his hand away from me.

"No, I didn't mean it like that, idiot. I'm trying to tell you to make your face fat again," he said through his teeth. I raised an eyebrow and tilted my head slightly, amazed by his choice of words. "You need to stop talking," I laughed, but Madara only seemed to get angrier. I thought smoke was going to blow out of his ears, or the top of his head was going to pop off.

"I'm just wor- f-forget it! We're late for the meeting," he growled and stormed past me, heading to a small room. I scratched my head, confused with his range of emotions. He's the one who is hard to keep up with.

What was he going to say anyways? Was he going to say he's worried about me? I felt a smile play onto my lips and I followed after Madara into the room. Have I finally reached that pit of his heart? What more could I get from him if I have truly managed to reach that point with him? I suddenly felt like I was in some blissful daze.

The room was filled with elders, the only young ones in the room was Madara, Izuna, and me. There was no seat for me to sit at, I usually just hung by the door and listened in on everything being said.

"What is the issue today?" Madara asked, clearly not wanting to be in this meeting.

"I think the most pressing matter is the upcoming battle," Izuna sighed.

Battle?

"What about it?" Madara asked.

"We have reason to believe that Tobirama will be participating in the battle. He's been spotted in nearby territory, possibly scouting out the area, preparing for the fight."

Tobirama… is it my fault that the Uchiha spotted him? I pressed a hand against my heart, trying to steady the iradical beat. Did I get him in trouble? All he's been trying to do is help me and it backfired on him.

"We allowed that Senju to roam around because we were too careless. I want more people out scouting the area. Also, no one is allowed to leave here without any notice," Madara paused for a moment and lowered his eyes.

"No one else is going to die an unnecessary death."

He's talking about Morina. I sucked in a sharp breath and looked away from him. Seeing him still feel sorrow for her made me want to vomit and cry out. He should forget about her, she's not here anymore. He needs to start thinking about me, only me.

He's worried about me, right? That's what he was trying to say earlier, so shouldn't he stop thinking of her? Why was he so hesitant to say it earlier? What do I have to do to make him say it out loud and clear?

"We'll do that, Madara, but back to Tobirama… there was originally no prominent shinobi for this battle, but with the brother of Hashirama Senju possibly joining I'm afraid we will need more men."

"More men?" Izuna asked and his eyes met with mine.

"The Isoroku can finally join. They're strong enough to finally fight-"

"No," Madara said, not even bothering to look at his brother. My eyes snapped to Madara, watching as he reached for papers laid out on the large desk in front of him.

"Why not? They didn't come here for free housing. This is the chance for them to fight for us," Izuna argued.

"They're not ready, drop it."

Madara raised his eyes and frustration was clearly shown in them. Everyone could see it, but like Izuna they felt that my men and I were ready to go to battle for them. I don't know if we are, and I don't want to. If Tobirama is really going to be participating in this battle then… what would happen if we ran into each other?

"Fine, they can be behind the front lines healing the wounded."

My eyes widened at the insane idea. My men are just barely getting the hang of medical ninjutsu, what makes him think we capable of going above and beyond when we can't even reach beyond?

I sucked in a sharp breath and rubbed my arms nervously.

"No, that's my final say in the matter!" Madara hissed, but one of the elders sitting at the table looked at me. He had the same dark piercing eyes as Madara and my breathing was halted in surprise.

"We have the leader of the Isoroku in this room. Why don't we ask her?" He asked, getting quite brave. For the first time since we entered Madara had finally looked at me.

He's worried about me, that has to be the reason why he's so insistent on not letting me join the battle. Why can't he just admit it? I smiled softly at him and his eyes widened momentarily before looking away to his brother.

"We can do it. Me and my men will help heal yours," I stated, not really realizing what I just said. I wanted Madara to fight back and say no. I wanted to hear him say in plain old words that he won't allow me to go because he was scared I would get hurt or killed.

But… as the elders all looked amongst each other in satisfaction that I agreed to help, Madara only closed his eyes and rested his cheek against his palm. His irritation had dropped and his face was filled with no sort of emotion that would tell me he would fight with me.

"Then it is settled. The Isoroku will participate in the upcoming battle."

"Thank you, Takeo," Izuna nodded and everyone stood up from their chairs, done with the meeting.

Madara stayed seated though and his eyes continued to stay closed. When they finally opened he didn't look at me. He stood up from his chair slowly and left the room, leaving me alone.


	22. Chapter 22

"How is the training going?"

"Going quite fine. I wasn't expecting this to be honest, Takeo."

I chuckled and continued reading the scroll in my hands. Of course, no one expects the loser people to suddenly be good at something, especially the losers themselves. With more time and effort, I can envision a world where the Isoroku are at top.

Why can't we?

"You should join us sometime. You've been training by yourself lately, it'll be good for a little human interaction," Akio laughed and I set the scroll down on the desk. I looked up at Akio for the first time since he entered my room and smiled. It wasn't genuine, it was forced, but it came so easily to me.

"I'll consider it. I just want you to make sure that everyone is getting stronger, that's all that really matters," I said. It took some time to actually convince my men to help the Uchiha in the upcoming battle. They were fixed on the idea that they wouldn't have to actually do any sort of work for the Uchiha. They thought we could just come and get what we need and then leave. Well, that was the plan, but I just had to screw things over for us and try to provoke Madara into admitting that he actually cared about me. Now, we're in this mess and we can't just back out now.

Madara won't even speak to me now, he's been avoiding me for the past week. With each passing day, I just grow more anxious and snappy. If things continue this way then there is no point in staying here. What's the point if I can't be close to Madara and get information from him? Or even just be with him?

I looked down at the scroll and traced over his writing. This was an old poem of his that's been cooped up in my room for a while. If I couldn't be with him physically then I can just look at his handwriting all day. This was something he put his feelings into and it will most likely be the closes thing I can ever get to his personal being.

"Are you okay? You've changed… ever since Morina died," Akio murmured softly. I nodded my head and clawed at the scroll laid down at my desk. My teeth were clenched so tightly I thought they would crack from the pressure.

"Yes, it took her death to make things more clear to me—"

I looked up at Akio and he froze, almost as if I scared him somehow, but I was just looking at him.

"The need to complete all my goals have become stronger than ever, and I have her to thank for that," I grinned. Akio gulped and started to shake his head at me.

"How… how on earth could the death of someone close to you make you feel this way? I know you cared for her deeply, but here you are thankful for her passing and easily smile at it," he said in a hush tone. His lips trembled, "No one noticed… but I did… you were gone that day and didn't come back till late. Was it you? Did you kill Morina?" He asked.

"I do leave you in the dark a lot, don't I?" I asked.

"TELL ME!"

"I don't know why you care, it's not like you even liked her," I scoffed, and Akio slammed his hands down on my desk, shaking it. His face was red and a vein looked like it was going to pop on his forehead.

"Don't play games with me, Takeo."

"Yes, I killed her," I answered simply.

"Don't understand why you're so worked up about it…" I muttered.

"Because! This isn't you, you don't succumb to murder or violence! You weren't born to bloody up your hands like this, and you know that!" Akio cried. His voice cracked and he grabbed at my bandaged hands, I flinched in response.

"I've seen you washing your hands. You scrub them so hard that they start to bleed and then you just wrap them up…" he whispered. I looked away, and his grip on my hands tightened, hurting them. I hissed in pain and pulled away quickly.

"You can pretend that this is the new you, but deep down you know it isn't. You try to wipe away the blood you spilt, but it won't go away."

I stood up from my desk and grabbed the scroll. "That's enough for now," I told him as I made my way to the door. I paused for a moment and looked back at Akio as he continued to stand in front of my desk.

"Make sure everyone is prepared for the battle—"

"You're okay with putting lives on the line for these people?" Akio asked as he turned around to face me. I pursed my lips and nodded my head slowly.

"If I'm going to be the leader of the Isoroku then I have to be okay with that. Except, I'm not okay with putting yours in risk," I answered. Akio's eyes widened and he took a step towards me, his face noticeably softened.

"I need Jiro's help controlling the clan, and if you die here then he won't," I muttered as I opened my door and walked out.

I walked down the hall and made my way outside. I was immediately greeted with the sight of my men training amongst themselves. They turned to me and I gave them a small smile.

"Lady Takeo, the training is going well."

"We're still a bit shaky, but I think we'll get the hang of medical ninjutsu in no time."

My smile widened and I nodded my head at them.

"Of course, you are part of the Isoroku clan, and there is no seal that will hold you back from your full potential," I said with pride. Smiles spread around the group and I started to back away from them, heading to the gates. It felt awkward to be around them for too long. They looked at me with admiration in their eyes, when previously it was filled with annoyance and disgust. They didn't even want to come here with me in the beginning, yet here they are… looking at me like this.

I want to make my clan stronger, better… just the way Dad wanted it to be. But, I don't think I can have the same affection for these people like him. At the end of the day I'm only doing this for him, not because I care for these people who looked down on me my whole life. I also want to do this to spite those who were responsible for my Dad's death.

If none of this had to be done I would be far away from here and just leave everything behind.

My pace to the gates were quick. I just wanted to hurry up and get out of here. It was so suffocating here even if I was physically alone. All of thoughts and desires to just be near Madara consumed me here because everything reminded me of him. The fact that Madara won't even come near me now makes things worse.

I can't even pinpoint the reason for my obsession now.

Was it because I was desperate to replace Morina, or did I have genuine feelings that got out of control? My feet started to drag and my pace slowed down. I was lying to myself thinking I could just get what I wanted from him without feeling anything.

I walked past the gates and none of that security Madara talked about from the meeting stopped me.

I didn't know where I was going, I just continued walking, wanting to get away from here. I kept my head low, as if I was trying to avoid the eyes of people watching me, but there were only trees here. I began heaving and I broke into a run, still feeling too close to the Uchiha compound. My legs started to burn and I was heaving now. I had so much built up frustration and anger and there was no way for me release it. I stopped running and tugged at the roots of my hair, wanting to pull them out.

I slowly opened my mouth, feelings myself beginning to tremble, and then I released a loud piercing scream. I continued to pull at my hair as I screamed. I took a moment to catch my breath and screamed again. I released my hair and stomped over to a tree, scratching at the bark as I slammed my forehead against it.

I continued clawing at the bark as I slammed my forehead repeatedly.

"WHY? WHY? WHY? WHY? WHY ME?" I shouted.

"WHY DID DAD LET HIMSELF DIE? WHY DID HE LEAVE ME?" I felt myself become faint as I continued to bash my forehead. I stopped clawing at the bark and instead clung to it. I wasn't crying, I was just so angry.

"Why couldn't you have stayed alive for me?" I whispered. "Why were you so selfish? You're the reason why this happened, why I'm like this now." I wonder if Dad could hear me if he would feel sorry for me. Would he care? Or would he be upset with me killing Morina? Would he want me to die instead of killing a precious friend?

That's what Mori said.

I pushed myself away from the tree, tripping over my feet. My head was throbbing and I felt so light headed. I blinked my eyes, trying to focus on the tree. When it finally became clear I glared at it. Sucking in a deep breath I charged at it and bashed against it again, making everything go dark.

-

"What happened?"

Tomio questioned as he held Takeo in his arms. The girl was knocked out, and had a single wound at the corner of her forehead.

They were in an open area in the forest. Rocks were scattered all over the place.

"How would I know? She's not my kid," Mori muttered as he placed his hands on his hip. He looked past Tomio to stare at the men standing behind his best friend. They followed their leader to search for his missing daughter.

"You can go, we found her," Mori told them and they nodded their heads, quickly vanishing. Tomio's eyes widened he turned back to look at his men to stop them, but they were gone before he could say anything. Tomio clenched his teeth and held his daughter tighter.

"You aren't the one who orders them, Mori…" he told him.

The atmosphere surrounding them turned cold and Mori sensed it. He raised an eyebrow in surprise at his friend's change of mood. Usually he was a bashful man, who was lighthearted about everything, but now he looked angry.

"You've gained the habit of doing that lately and I want you to stop," Tomio said, raising his head slightly. His eyes were narrow, creating a hard persona for the man, but you could still he had a touch of softness as he fingers rubbed against his daughter's head of hair.

"You know what happened to Takeo, and I want you to tell me," Tomio growled.

"You look scary, Tomio. Do you think I did that to Lady Takeo?" Mori asked slowly as he raised his hand to point at Tomio's daughter.

The man holding his child felt a chill run through his body and he held his daughter even tighter. He sucked in a deep breath and watched as Mori began to shake his head.

"I can do a whole lot more than a simple bash to the head, you know. Especially to a child who stood there looking like a damn deer," he chuckled. He ran a hand through his hair, "You know, the elders and everyone else for that matter are getting tired of your beliefs" He said lowly.

"What does this have to do with Takeo ending up like this?" Tomio questioned through his barred teeth. Mori smirked, "People are unhappy with you Tomio, if you don't want things to end up worse then I suggest you stop before I have to resort to different measures."

Tomio shifted the weight of his daughter to one side of arm, making the other free. He reached to grab Mori's collar out of anger, but before he could even touch the fabric the man had vanished.


	23. Chapter 23

"If I had known you were going to be this much trouble I would have left you there."

I groaned and watched as my arms swayed back and forth. I was coming in and out of sleep, but still I managed to catch every little complaint coming from Tobirama. He found me lying on the ground and woke me up by scolding me.

It wasn't so bad though. It was almost calming somehow to hear him scold me as he wrapped bandages around my head. After that he picked me up and swung me over his shoulder and walked on. His pace wasn't fast, it was quite slow, making the journey smooth and comfortable.

"You wouldn't have left me there. Don't lie," I murmured. No quick response came from Tobirama, not even a scoff. He had his arm wrapped around the back of my legs, keeping me from falling off his shoulder. Instead of giving me a retort I felt his grip on them tighten slightly.

I started to grow more awake and restless. I didn't want to be hanging off his shoulder like some dirty towel. I started to push myself off his shoulder and wiggle around. "This is uncomfortable. Put me down!" I moaned. Tobirama fought against my movement and held onto me tighter.

"You think you can walk in the kind of state you're in?" He barked.

"Probably not," I whispered.

"But I don't like being carried this way!"

Tobirama stopped walking. "Then how should I carry you?" he questioned, clearly losing his temper. I tried wiggling my way off his shoulder again. It was useless though because he just tightened his grip. "Carry me in your arms or something. Not on your boney shoulder," I sighed.

"My arms…?"

"Yes, your arms—"

Suddenly I slid off and landed roughly on the ground with a loud thud.

"Why did you do that?!" I yelled. Tobirama stared down at me with no amusement in his eyes. "You're trying to get your way with me and I won't accept it—"

My cheeks heated up and I shook my head quickly. "No, I wasn't! Don't say things like that!" I yelled. "But you were trying to get your way with me—"

I jumped to my feet, ready to yell at him, but I suddenly became lightheaded. My knees wobbled and before I could fall back down, Tobirama caught me.

-

"You got your way with me."

I brought my hands to Tobirama's mouth and covered it.

"Shhh, I told you not to say that!" I yelled. Tobirama rolled his eyes and continued to carry me in his arms like I asked him to. The walk was quiet, but it wasn't uncomfortable. I didn't mind the silence between us.

I felt so comfortable that my mind wasn't even going through that same mental breakdown that led me here in the first place. I rested my head against his chest and sighed in content. "I don't know why you were anywhere near me, but thank you… for helping me," I whispered. Tobirama remained quiet.

"I sensed your chakra. I got worried."

I looked up at him and saw that he was staring straight ahead.

"Worried?" I whispered.

Tobirama continued staring straight ahead, but he nodded his head in response.

I felt my lips trembled and I rested my head back on his chest as I clutched tightly at my chest. Why did I feel so happy to hear him say that? I almost wanted to cry, but I would be mortified if he saw me doing that.

"I don't know why you ventured that far, or why you decided to hurt yourself like that… but don't do it again."

"You'll get worried?" I asked quietly as I looked up at him. He finally met my eyes and I felt myself get swallowed by them.

"Yes."

I felt like some giddy child and quickly buried my face into his chest. I clutched at his shirt and let the giggles fall out. I felt so happy, I wanted to cry and laugh at the same time. Why was this such a big deal to me? Why did it matter so much?

"Takeo?"

"Sorry! I don't know why this is happening. Maybe I hit my head too hard?"

"Tch, don't do that again!"

"I won't! I promise!"

Tobirama nodded his head and stopped walking. He took in a deep breath and looked down at me with frustrated eyes. "Is something wrong?" I asked. He shook his head and tightened his grasp on me.

"Can you walk?"

I pressed my fingers to my head and felt only a slight pain. I should be well enough to walk.

"Yes."

Tobirama started to set me down, making sure I was able to stand before taking his hands away from me completely. I didn't want him to let me go, but I wasn't about to tell him that. "I can't walk you any further. You'll have to go alone," he said. I looked down the path I was supposed to take and frowned. Madara said at a meeting that he was going to have more people out on lookout. I guess Tobirama sensed them up ahead.

"The place where we train is also up ahead… does that mean we can't…"

"Yes, we can no longer train, I'm afraid."

I bit my lip, frustrated with his answer. Should I be worried, though? There is no doubt that Tobirama knows who I am. So, why is he helping me? Why is he training me and even coming this close to the Uchiha?

Is he using me somehow?

"You should go, Takeo."

I nodded my head slowly. I didn't want to go… I wanted to stay here with him. I felt that once I head back to the Uchiha compound, that the next time I see Tobirama won't be on terms that I like. "If I go back… things will be different… the next time I see you," I whispered. I rubbed my nose and stared down at the ground.

"I'm afraid… of that next time, Tobirama."

I heard a scoff and I looked up at him. I could feel my eyes start to water up. Why is he scoffing at me? I'm being serious!

"Don't do that, jerk!" I yelled as I slapped his arm. He paid no attention to my attack and shook his head at me. It only made me angry. Did he not feel the same way?

"You aren't allowed to be afraid, you're a ninja—"

"No, I'm not!" I screamed.

My eyes widened, along with Tobirama. We were both surprised by my sudden outburst. I don't know why I got so angry suddenly, but I could already feel myself get worked up again. After a few moments of silence between us, Tobirama took notice of my breathing slowly becoming heavier and heavier.

"I-I'm sorry… I didn't mean to yell—"

"Then why are you here?" Tobirama asked, cutting me off. He uncrossed his arms and took a step towards me. Was this his way of intimidating smaller people? By towering over them and glaring down like some monster?

Why am I here?

"I-I don't understand…" I murmured. Tobirama narrowed his eyes at me. "If you aren't a shinobi then why are you here? Why are you training?" He asked. I could feel my body start to shake, like some scared little animal, except I wasn't afraid. I wanted to let everything out. I wanted to tell Tobirama everything. Even if he already had an idea where my goals lie, I wanted to let them out myself.

I have… to be here. Everything I've done so far is so that I can be strong enough to become leader. I rubbed my nose again and turned away from him. "Despite of everything I'm doing and what I have planned… I don't want to consider myself a ninja. A ninja is someone who is on a higher pedicle than everyone else, someone people can rely on to protect them… I can't be that, and I'll never be that."

"What are your goals exactly?" Tobirama asked.

"They're selfish. I'm only doing it so I can get back at those who hurt… my father," I admitted. My voice was shaky and I tried not to say everything, but I couldn't help, but let a smile spread across my face. I imagine it looking very pathetic and almost sad looking. It felt so good to just let this little bit out. "I don't care about what will happen in the long run. If what I want will help others or not… What I'm aiming for is spite, and I will get what I want," I whispered.

It felt so good to let everything out, but once realization set in I could feel my body start to tremble. I sucked in a deep breath and gave a slight chuckle. "Don't listen to what I just sa—"

"I can't respect someone who expresses such selfishness."

My eyes widened and I looked at Tobirama.

"It's impossible for me to accept someone who gives no worry for their people. You really aren't a shinobi after all," he said. There was no anger in his voice, no sort of negative emotion. It was like he was having a regular conversation with me. I felt my lips twitch and I knew I was about to make an ugly face. I immediately turned away from him and used my sleeve to wipe away tears that already escaped from me. I sucked in a shaky breath and tried my best to calm myself down.

"I-I understand, Tobirama…" My teeth were so close to chattering, I hoped Tobirama would leave soon so he wouldn't hear it. It hurt to hear this. He was being more direct with me than Madara, telling me how he felt right off the bat and yet here I was… handling it a lot more better. It still hurt… it hurt so much… but I didn't feel like running away and bashing my head against a tree. Or maybe I was just too tired to do that again.

"Goodbye, Takeo."

I couldn't face Tobirama again.

"Stay safe, please…" I whispered. I felt a little pathetic for my choice of words, but I didn't want to say goodbye. If I said this to Madara I would imagine he'd give me a scoff and some sarcastic remark. I sighed and closed my eyes after not hearing a response from Tobirama. Suddenly, I felt a hand brush softly against my hair. I flinched at the touch and immediately the hand retracted. There was a gust of wind and I couldn't feel Tobirama's piercing gaze anymore.

-

I dragged my feet all the way back to the barracks. I could feel the gazes on me. I don't know if they were looking at me because of my bandaged head or if they were suspicious of me for leaving the Uchiha compound and coming back late. The sun was starting to set and when I ran off it was late into the morning.

I just wanted to go to my bed and lay down.

"Takeo."

I stopped walking and kept my eyes down.

"What is it, Madara?" I asked softly. I couldn't see him, but I could see his shadow. Despite my growing obsession to be near him at all times… I just wanted to be alone right now. I didn't want to hear what he had to say… I was too afraid and tired. Would he leave me like Tobirama?

"Come with me, now," he said. It was like an order. There was no lightness in his voice, making me queasy. I finally looked up at him, not being able to hold back my scared expression. I felt my body start to tremble again and this time I wasn't going to hide any ugly expression I had to show. It was easy to let the tears run down my face. The wall I built to keep them from breaking through had crumbled earlier and there was nothing I could do to stop it.

Was he going to leave me too? I don't care if he had no respect for me, as sad as it sounds… I just don't want him to leave me. Nothing good would come from it. I wouldn't be able to handle the rejection and my goal would never be complete.

Madara's eyes had grown large at the sight of me.

I shook my head.

"N-no! I can't do this right now," I cried. I took a step back from him and turned around, running away, but before I could put distance between us Madara had already caught me.

He grabbed a hold of my arm and tugged me towards me, making me fall against his chest in the cheesiest way possible. I tried to push away from him, but he held onto me. "Don't do this right now, Madara. Please, I can't!" I begged. Madara's grip on me tightened and he forced me into some weird hug with his head nuzzling into the crook of my neck. His actions were weird and left me confused. If he was trying to comfort me in some sort of way… it wasn't working. If he had done this days before I would have fell for it, but I just wanted to get away.

"Where the hell were you? What happened to you?" He said hoarsely. His hand moved to the back of my head and gripped tightly at my hair while pushing me towards him even more. I groaned at the lack of space. I was being suffocated. Never has he been this close to me. He always made sure there was space between us, but now it was like he was trying to conjoin our bodies.

"Takeo, answer me" he hissed. I could hear some anxiousness in his voice.

"I-I fell…" I muttered.

"Bullshit, tell me what happened!"

I let out a whimper and managed to slither my hands between us. With a strong push, I separated us.

"Don't act like you care all a sudden! You've been ignoring me, leaving me alone! You can't just give a shit now! Or pretend to!" I screamed. I felt cold and hugged myself.

"I was alone… wondering what would happen to you and me. If there even is a you and me," I spat. I could feel myself get worked up and I wanted to lash out at him. His stupid strict face was getting on my nerves and I wanted to tear it off.

"All I wanted was for you to tell me that you care, is that too much? You didn't have to leave me like that," I whispered. I looked at Madara and he was stiff. It was like blood stop flowing through his body and he just froze in place. Finally, there was movement. His mouth opened slightly to say something but he closed it quickly. I shut my eyes and sighed.

"You stupid girl. You left me running around looking for you all because you wanted to hear a few mindless words?" He asked, voice slightly raising. I opened my eyes and Madara's hands latched onto my arms.

"When I saw you walk through here with your head bandaged like that… you can't imagine the thoughts that ran through my head."

"I was worried, Takeo! You have no idea about the stress you put me under today! I thought—I thought you would…" he words faltered and he closed his mouth, eyes wandering down.

"You thought I would end up like Morina?" I asked.

His eyes shot back up and he didn't say anything, but I knew he was telling me yes.

"I won't end up like her."


	24. Chapter 24

Light was starting to enter the room, signaling that it was morning now. For once in my life I have woken up on my own to watch the daylight come. I couldn't sleep and spent most of the night tossing and turning, irritating Madara. He got so annoyed with it that he ended up leaving the room in the middle of the night to go sleep in a different room.

I sighed and switched sides again, catching glimpse of his bookcase.

It was in the corner, not getting much attention. It was filled with plain looking books so I never really paid it any thought. I would catch Madara from time to time grabbing books off it, but still I didn't think it was of any importance. There weren't any titles on the spine of the book either. It was blank and they were all one solid cover of black.

Deciding to check it out, I kicked the covers off me, making them bundle together at the end of the bed. Throwing my legs over, I slowly got out of bed and walked over to the bookcase. What does Madara read? Even though he's… seemingly intelligent, I will never admit to him being so, I never took him as the kind of person to read for fun.

Maybe this was his big stash of poems that he wrote or something?

I took the first book and cracked it open.

The first page consisted of Madara's handwriting. As I flipped through the pages, never really reading anything, I saw that it was nothing, but his writing. It looked like notes he had taken. They were written with such precise, showing the effort he put into making these.

Each page was labeled at the top left corner with a letter. This page I was on had an 'I' on the top.

As I scanned the page I came across my name. I couldn't help but frown at his. I hadn't read what it he wrote, but I could already feel it wasn't going to be something that I'd like. Why would he write about me? There's no information that could be important enough to put down.

As I read my section of the page I realized it was just a description of who I am. He wrote that I had sufficient strength and speed. He wrote that I had weak chakra control, but then there was an updated part above it, saying that it increased, along with a date. It wasn't a very long section written for me. He also wrote down jutsu's that I had mastered and so far, there was only one, which was the clone jutsu. Next to it was the handsigns for the jutsus.

This wasn't something I really felt comfortable with. Why is he taking notes on me? What's the reason?

As I flipped through the pages I came across others that Madara had written down. There was very few that had great detail. I even found Jiro's name, but it only had a few sentences mentioning that his abilities were rumored to be overpowering. I wonder what Madara will put once he actually goes against Jiro… if that will ever happen.

I paused for a minute.

Would he have Tobirama?

I looked for the page with an S on the top and I found it. The first name I saw was Hashirama Senju. There was so much information and background on him that it took up almost two pages. All the Jutsus he had taken up another page.

I know who he is, of course. He's the leader of the Senju, and Tobirama's brother. That's where Jiro went and where I originally wanted to go. I heard that he was kind and easy to get along with, but also very strong. I thought they would be more understanding of who I was at the time.

But I ended up losing that rock and paper scissors game with Jiro.

I wonder how it would've been like if I went there instead of here.

I sighed and flipped the page, finding Tobirama. He had almost as much information as his brother. I didn't need to read to learn how strong and fast he is.

I flipped the page again and found what I was looking for.

Every jutsu that Tobirama has mastered was written on this page… at least every jutsu that Madara has witnessed firsthand. The hand signs were written, much to my convenience. I ripped out the page and stuffed it into my pocket.

I placed the book back onto the shelf and walked back to the bed, folding the blankets neatly and placing them at the end of the bed. I was eager to get out of here now. Walking out of the room, I immediately spotted Madara sleeping on the couch. He was on his side, with his back facing towards me. He had no blanket on him and was huddled up, showing that he was cold.

I rolled my eyes at him.

I tried to offer him a blanket before he left the bed last night, but he was too stubborn and wouldn't accept one. I went back to the room to grab one and placed it on him slowly, making sure not to wake him. He would probably get even more annoyed with me if I did.

I watched him for a moment.

He hassled me for getting hurt. He wasn't even nice about it either! His words were rough, but physically he was gentle. It was weird.

He tried to get all the details of when I left the compound, but after refusing to talk about it he gave up.

I sighed and made my way out.

The streets were empty, of course. I liked it like this. I didn't feel all their eyes judging my every move.

The walk to the barracks wasn't very long. Everyone was still sleeping and I quietly made my way to my room. I locked the door and immediately slipped out the paper from my pocket. I could feel my hands shake as I looked over the jutsus. This what I needed, what would help me get stronger.

I looked down the list of water release jutsus and found one that was familiar.

"Suiton Suijinheki…" I murmured.

My mind went back to the water jutsu Tobirama showed me. He shot water from his mouth and it would form a wall of water for defense. I chuckled softly, remembering how annoyed he got with me for saying that the water that splashed on my face was basically his spit. I shook the memory from my head and looked at the hand seals Madara had written next to the move.

"Tiger, Snake, Rat, Snake, and Tiger…"

This was the first jutsu that Tobirama had intended to teach me, and it will be the first one that I'll master. I folded the paper and held it against my chest. I felt so relieved and happy to have something like this in my possession. I can never imagine becoming as strong as Tobirama, but… this will help me. This is the sort of information we came looking here for and I finally have it.

-

I went back to the training area.

I memorized each hand sign, practicing it while I was walking to area.

I stood at the edge of water, feeling nervous. I have to master this jutsu, there is no other option for me. If I can't do this then what makes me think I can do any other water technique?

I just have to focus and build up my chakra.

I no longer wear the seal on my birth defect, I can do this. My chakra is not being held back anymore.

I closed my eyes and sucked in a deep breath. I zoned out every outside thing, every unpleasant thought and focused on building my chakra in the pit of my stomach.

The Isoroku are blessed with strong and large amounts of chakra, but we are too afraid to take advantage of it. I'll be the first to do such a thing and take over my clan. I'll get back at everyone who was responsible for my father's death. I'll show them that they should have never looked down on me like the way they did.

I could feel my stomach start to feel fuller. There was a weird tumbling motion inside it, but I didn't let it break my focus. The tumbling felt like small waves, it needed to be stronger.

My anger towards what happened will be my drive to complete my goals. I won't be the same kind leader that let others walk over them like my father. I won't let anyone take advantage of me, I won't let them think that they can get away with things. I'll be the opposite of my father.

The waves inside me got stronger.

He was strong enough to oppose anyone who went against him. But he never did anything about it. He was too weak to set his ideas straight. No matter how much I love him… I have to come to the realization of who my father was… he was a weak-willed leader that could only talk about his ideas and never set out to make them happen. That's what got him killed.

I opened my eyes.

The waves were violently crashing inside me.

I did the signs like I practiced.

"Suiton Suijinheki!"

I hunched forward, making my mouth form a small o and immediately the water that was building up shot out. My eyes widened in surprised and I watched as the water formed a wall that would come to surround me, but only halfway. It wasn't as powerful as Tobirama's, but it was to its own degree strong and tall.

Eventually the wall would die down.

It didn't last very long. It probably could have gone on for much longer, but the shock of even being able to produce a wall of water caught me off guard and made me lose control of the jutsu. I felt tired from the move, but I could still produce another one with just a moment of rest.

Did I really do something like this?

How many people back home are even able to do a jutsu that's connected to their nature release?

Could Jiro do this?

I chuckled and ran a hand through my hair. "This is amazing…" I whispered to myself. I sat down on the ground and sucked in a deep breath. I shouldn't get ahead of myself just yet. I still need to practice this jutsu and then get to the others on the list. I wonder how much time I have to learn all this? It'll be awhile…

Should I even stick around here?

Just one piece of paper changed everything for me.

Would the others feel okay with this idea of leaving?

What about Madara? Not that I would tell him, but how would things turn out if me and everyone else dipped in the middle of the night? Would he be heartbroken? Would he search land and sea for me and declare his long-awaited love for me? Or would he decapitate me?

Most likely decapitate me.

I could see it now…

Madara had finally found me. I was running desperately through the forest, trying to lose him. Too scared to even conjure up a water jutsu. Blood would be pouring down my face, not because Madara had injured me, but because I fell on a rock or something like that. I would trip over a branch and Madara would finally catch up. He will stare down at me and would say something about how like he was gonna kill me for betraying the Uchiha or whatever.

Then he would swoop off my head in one slice.

It would be bloody and it would be painful.

Just like my period.

"What're you doing out here?"

I turned around and spotted Madara. I scratched the back of my neck and turned away from him. "I was just making up a scenario of how you would cut my head off," I answered truthfully. Madara made a face at me. He approached me and eyed me up and down.

"Have you been training?" he asked.

"Well… yeah… why else would I be out here, dumbass," I muttered and immediately Madara shot a scowl at me. "Watch your tongue, Takeo—"

"Or you're gonna watch it for me? Why did you come out here anyway? I'm not going to run off again, if that's what you thought," I told him and his eyebrows were raised slightly. I guess my words caught him off guard.

"That's not what I came out here for," he said and his eyes averted to the side slowly, then quickly made their way back to me. I couldn't help but smile at this. "You're so much easier to read as of late. I wonder why that is?" I questioned as I took a step closer to him. He made no movement to step back from me and instead stared down at me as I smiled up at him. His face made no frown, he just looked down at me.

If I were to leave… I would, without any doubt, miss and pathetically yearn for Madara like some sick puppy.

"I'm not going to run off. I promise," I whispered to him, and Madara's eyes closed slowly. He seemingly accepted my words to him and allowed his body, which was tense, to finally relax. After a few moments, he opened his eyes.

"Okay."


End file.
